Claws's Glory
by Gree
Summary: The culmination of the war across Karovioa begins With the Eagle Claws chapter leading the charge. Completed. Inspired by the Battlegrounds series.
1. Clarity

Author's Notes. This is the third part of my Eagle Claws stories, I tried to add some more characterization this this one.

Disclaimer: This is inspired by the Battlegrounds series and is done with the full approval of TheLoneHunter. His locations and refernces are done with his full permission.

**Claws's Glory**

**Chapter One-Clarity**

* * *

**Traknor Primary-Traknor Desert.**

Belsarius's scouts peered out at the large form of Traknor Primary. The tall, grey edifice had a series of large alien symbols, spray-painted into the side of the complex, most likely by the Tau's worker drones. A large symbol of the T'au sept dominated the side of building, with smaller, directional symbols down on the sides, leading to the access gates and lower refineries of Traknor Primary.

The building itself was quite large, as big as a city block, with tall, blocky towers, a leftover from Imperial occupation. Those led deeper into the water refinery. Around the refinery were patches of broken rock and trees, rough ground, with pipes leading to several smaller domes, where extra water processing took place, in the distance was a smaller version of the main building. Traknor Secondary.

Traknor Primary was a water refinery near the Traknor Waste, an arid piece of land that bordered the southern edge of the main Karovioan continent. Earlier the Imperial strategists had given it little notice, preferring to strike in the longer, but more temperate road in the Dorsean province.

But Lord General's Healy's latest offense after the capture of Newark city had ended in failure, three regiments annihilated by the Tau in a rapid encirclement movement, a battle that put the 23rd Army's latest advances into a rapid halt. The Lord General's office had been preparing for another offensive, this time with the help of Eagle Claws, an offensive, hopefully, that would change the course of the war and the recent setbacks.

The Operation's name was Heavenfall.

Belsarius and his scouts had been stealthily inserted into enemy territory by Thunderhawk; flying low to avoid the Tau sensors, the gunship had deposited them in the low scrublands that bordered the Traknor waste. For there the scouts had set out in blackened armor and camo-capes, the stealth material and the skills of the young space marines, allowing them to slip past far-ranging Tau patrols.

From their entire journey through the hot, dusty scrublands, a place so unlike the cold, grey homeworld of the Eagle Claws, they soldiered on, eating the local lizards and poison brushes, their enhanced bodies easily coping with the toxins.

Belsarius was a veteran of the chapter, he had served it for almost two centuries, and had spent four years of those studying under the famed Sergeant Telion of the Ultramarines, he was the one who taught scouts their necessary skills. He did this because he cared more about the future of the chapter than his own glory, he had endured some comments from his power armored brothers for serving in the 10th rather than the 1st, as was his due, but Belsarius knew that he had made the right choice.

He lay out on his belly, crawling ever so slowly towards the side of the Refinery, shrouded in his camo-cloak like a blanket, the odd material taking the perfect appearance of the dusty ground beneath him.

Belsarius and his scouts had circled the place earlier in the night, noting that the south-eastern wing of the refinery was older and not as well taken care of as the other walls. It was situated on a low rise, bordering a series of rough and jagged rocks, opposite the refinery pipeline. It would be a good place for the Astartes to launch an assault, he had decided, he and Allus; one of his most promising pupils, now crept towards the wall of the Traknor Primary.

He could spot a fire warrior guard on one of the observation railings, looking out. He was about seventy feet away, a little too close for Belsarius's liking. What the warrior bored? Belsarius couldn't tell, he moved slowly, the camoline material of his cape would prevent almost all sensors from noticing him if he moved cautiously enough. He cradled a silenced bolter. Allus found a small outcropping in the ground. There he withdrew a short, camouflaged box, and placed it into the ground, digging quietly as he could.

Fortunately the Tau had not launched any drones yet. That could complicate any scouting attempts. Allus finished digging the hole and set the locator beacon down, activating the locator's runes, just like Techmarine Galba had briefed him. With a small yellow flash it activated, hurriedly Allus covered it and looked up. He silently sighed in relief, the Fire Warrior hadn't noticed. Quickly he brushed dirt over the homer and started crawling back. Belsarius covering him.

Once they where out of sight Belsarius and Allus got up and ran in the quick, ground-eating stride that the sergeant had trained his scouts in. Behind them, in the sky, the glowing red contrails of drop pods could be seen.

* * *

**A Week earlier-Aboard ****the**_** Sword of the Emperor**_

Laetres finished with his weapons practice, the twin sharpened blades dripping with the syth-blood of the training servitor he had fought. The corpse of the cyborg now lay in pieces under his feet. Light shone off his shaven head from the illumination strips above.

He was not even breathing. The First Sergeant could handle two or three more of those before he was challenged; this was more of a refresher course for him than anything. He went over to the weapon lockers and handed them to a cleaning servitor who beeped and crawled off on tracked treads that replaced its legs. He was in the training halls of the _Sword of the Emperor_, a wide, spacious place that was indeed for use of honing close combat skills, a larger, different raining bay was located elsewhere in the ship for team exercises.

His team, he thought glumly. He rubbed the skin on the back of his neck; it still felt raw where he had been scrubbed with holy waters and oils in the after-battle purification rites for protection against daemonic corruption. After the battle at Dalu each Astartes, after they had been healed, underwent a series of purity checks by the Company Chaplains and Librarians, while their flesh was cleansed by the attention of the apothecaries and their purity-servitors.

All of the Eagle Claws had been found pure after two weeks of extensive checks. Rapidly Captain Basiculus had given out orders to prepare for another mission attempt on the surface of Karovioa.

''I thought I would find you here'' a deep voice said behind him. Laetres whirled around.

Chaplain Britannicus stood there. He was unarmored, like Laetres, now clad in a simple black robe with a silver skull necklace around his thick neck, an eagle's wing tattoo covered one cheek and his shaven head was covered with scars. His left arm was a bionic replacement.

''Brother-Chaplain, what are you doing here?'' the First Sergeant questioned.

Brittanicus looked at him. ''I have come for you, naturally Brother, I feel that you have spiritual problems.'' he explained.

''I have undergone the purity checks, there is no taint-'' Laetres began.

''It's not that'' Britannicus cut him off. ''It's about your squad'' he said.

Laetres held his breath. ''My squad?''

The Chaplain nodded. ''Of course. Tell me, what are they to you?'' he questioned.

''The most valuable things in the world'' he replied distantly.

''Yet you had sustained heavy casualties, battle brothers where inducted from the 9th to fill in the gaps in the First squad'' he said.

An odd sensation crawled in Laetres's gut, what was he getting at.

''Battle brothers are inducted into the battle companies all the time, it's hardly usual for that to happen'' the sergeant replied.

''But this time is different'' the Chaplain said. Laetres was silent. He pressed on.

''You where the First squad, where you not? That means you where the forefront of assaults usually, the company elite, and you took heavier losses than you expected, didn't you? And now you have recently inducted line brothers in the elite?'' the Chaplain questioned him.

''I'm not going to blame anyone but myself, Brother'' he addressed Brittanicus.

''I will not blame by dead brothers'' he said, his voice rising. The Chaplain lifted a hand.

''Forgive me brother, I did not mean any insult, but'' he walked forward.

''You do not feel resentment towards them, you feel resentment towards yourself'' he said. Laetres was silent again, with a shock he realized exactly what the feeling in his gut was.

''We both know that you can blame that on a variety of things, your inexperience fighting the Tau, the unexpected arrival of the daemonic, the chapter prides itself on preparedness.'' The Chaplain said.

''I accept full reasonability, I was squad leader'' Laetres replied hotly. ''And no brother, I know what you are thinking, I do not blame the Brother-Captain at all, he made the right choice-''

''Again it's not that brother, although that does bring up an interesting point, I'll have to look into that'' he trailed off. He shook his head. ''Anyway the point I was trying to make is that your squad, to be filled with fresh line brothers, is to be rotated into a fire support role, as according with the codex.'' The Chaplain said.

''I know that, every novice knows that'' the sergeant said with annoyance.

''You want to prove yourself, even though you know it goes against doctrine, what causes a split in you is between doctrine and duty, whether to request your commander for the lead choice of the attack or comply with the Codex'' Brittanicus summarized.

Laetres was taken aback. ''You're completely right…… I think'' he trailed off.

''I'm a Chaplain brother'' Brittanicus chuckled. ''It's what I do'' his expression turned serious.

''You do not feel arrogant?'' he asked him.

''Of course not-''

''Good, enough Space Marines have fallen to the sin of arrogance to make the whole thing distasteful to me'' Britannicus explained.

''Our chapter-'' continued.

''-Our chapter may seem aloof and prideful to outsiders, but we know our limits, when half the Emperor's legion turned against him in the Heresy, they did so out of pride'' he stated.

''Guilliman, our blessed father, made caution against pride and complacence in the Codex astartes, which we have followed since our founding. First Sergeant Laetres, pick those eyes off the floor and look at me'' he commanded.

Immediately he did so. The Chaplain laid one hand on his shoulder, his organic one, ''Promise to me, on your life, that you will follow duty, the Codex has not failed the Astartes in its moral guidance for ten millennia'' he stated.

''We are a warrior brotherhood, that means foremost we look out for our own, trust in the chapter, sergeant, and we will trust in you, we will be their for you, the chapter gives you strength, without a chapter a marine would be litter better than a mercenary or pirate.'' He lectured.

''By that same standard a chapter is like a chain, a single weak link can break the chapter, the Eagle Claws do not tolerate weakness, purity in mind and body is something we all must strive for'' Brittanicus said, with pride in his voice.

''The other chapters who fell, they ignored the codex, and acted on their own ambitions, ambition is a good thing, when moderated, but you should never ignore duty or the Will of the Emperor, will you promise me that Laetres?'' Britannicus asked.

''Yes'' the sergeant nodded. ''Yes, I Laetres Alerei swear upon my chapter and life I will follow the codex Brother-Chaplain'' he finished.

Britannicus looked him in the eyes, measuring his worth, finally he let go. ''You should get back to your training, I will be in the chapel attending to the rest of my duties, in case you still desire to see me for more guidance.''

He turned and walked out, right before he reached the doors he stopped and turned around. ''Brother, we will soon drop, if you wish to prove yourself then I'm sure the captain will allow you to find glory'' Britannicus stated.

Wit that he left.

Another mission? So soon? Laetres felt hope surge though his being. All his previous doubts where gone now, he was filled with a sudden kind of clear thought, yes; he nodded to himself, walking over to the weapons locker.

He would find clarity.

* * *

**Three days earlier-Newark Trade Hall Seven**

Brother-Captain Basiclus entered the meeting room of Lord-General Healy's command building. He was followed by Kommneus and Laetres, both in freshly polished plate.

The building was formerly a large meeting hall for Karovioa's trade guilders, the same ones who had negotiated with the Tau Water Caste agents, they where dead, now, executed by Imperial firing squads. They were in Newark city, barely a month after Imperial force had seized control, the Eagle Claws had missed most of that time, with their own purity rituals after the incident at Dalu.

The roof was situated in the highest level of the building. The light shone through pleasantly into the room. A wide holo-table was set up in the center with seats prepared; Healy was there, sitting with his aides. A tech-priests nearby tended to the holo-table. The building itself was heavily protected by an entire company of Hydra batteries and the Lord General's personal lifeguard regiment. A necessary precaution if any Tau infiltrators tried to assassinate the commanders of the 23rd army.

However such was the veil of secrecy that the Eagle Claws had only recently been informed it was too take place, Basiclus and his brothers had barely boarded their Thunderhawk and gotten there in time. When they came to the doors they where stopped and scruitized by the Lord General's Stormtroopers, this process was repeated twice over on their way into the briefing room.

Basiclus looked around, noting with some surprise that there where fewer people than he has first expected. A handful of Guard officers where around the holo-table, whereas many more could have been fitted easily.

A half-mechanized man in the uniform of an Elysian Colonel stood next to a pinch-cheeked man in a captain's uniform while a young female commissar stood behind them. Next where three Tallarn officers and their commissars. Across the table was a Brimlock officer, a Stromtrooper major, a man in the uniform of Imperial intelligence and an Imperial tactician. The Lord General himself was seated in his command throne at the end.

There where two other officers, each in camouflaged greatcoats. The Malnian regiment, Basiclus realized, one was an older bulldog of a man and the other was a tall, slender man in the uniform of a major.

''Lord General'' Basiclus began. ''I was expecting this be a larger meeting'' he said.

''This is a small meeting, but it concerns a very large event, I assure you Lord-Captain'' Healy said.

''Colonel Loric here'' he indicated the mechanized Elysian. ''Will explain, but first I trust everyone will sample this tea? It's a most delightful local blend taken from the local townships'' he said as several of his servants began to pour out cups of local tea.

''Lord-General'' Basiclus said, some irritation creeping into his voice, he had no real time for this, Healy was a born and raised hiver noble, but his fripperies did not need to concern the Eagle Claws.

''Nonsense captain'' the general smiled, just taste it. Grudgingly Basiclus accepted the cup; Kommneus however refused the offer, while Laetres just looked bewildered. For the most part the Guard officers accepted their cups.

Basiclus tasted it, it was a strong, tangy blend, and the Astartes Captain did not know whether it was good or not, he had little experience with such matters.

''It's nice'' he replied in a guarded tone. ''You have good taste'' he lied, just wanting to get on with the briefing.

Laetres tasted the tea and his face blanched at the usual sensation, he had drank worse things before, but he was simply not prepared to deal with the strong taste, quick he swallowed it and handed it a nearby batman.

''Thank you'' the Lord General grinned. ''Now, Loric, Nealsen, you can begin'' he said. Indicating the Elysian ,who stared at this cup in consternation, and the stone-faced tactician.

''Traknor Water Refinery lies ninety-six kilometers southeast of our position'' Nealsen said, he was an old and balding man with a flat tone of voice. The holo-table activated, showing a map of the region.

''It is a hundred and ninety-nine kilometers southwest of Karovioa city, the plan that myself and Colonel Loric have constructed, revolves around taking the facility in a quick surgical strike, the facility will then be used to supply a southward thrust through the Traknor Wastelands towards Karovioa city.'' He explained.

Basiclus mentally nodded, the Tau, expecting the Imperials to come over the temperate zone, would not expect a thrust over the flat deserts. Such a move could end the war months ahead of time.

''Will this work? We've all read the reports from Taros, about Operation Comet'' the older bulldog Colonel of the Malnian regiments stated bluntly. Loric turned to face him.

''That operation was plagued by bad luck, my brother regiment was quite unfortunate in that regard, he have several factors working to our advantage,'' he explained. Loric was a tall, muscular man, his right arm and face, along with half his chest and both legs where bionic replacements, the right arm was special however.

Basiclus's trained eye spotted the form of a relic power fist, slender than most Guard pattern equipment the thing was clearly a very ancient piece of archeotech, most likely from the Dark Age of Technology, Galba would love to take a look at that.

Briefly the Captain wondered where the Guardsman had gotten it, before his attention was focused once again on the briefing. ''This plan, Operation: Heavenfall, differs in that we have a better source of supply than the army on Taros'' he said.

Everyone knew that Healy, despite his outer image of indolent luxury, was a cautious and careful commander, he established a series of heavily fortified supply bases and sent a significant proportion of his fighting strength to protect the rear. Basiclus appreciated that. Although he himself was a bluntly self-admitted tactician he knew that it was the logistics that won wars. The Tau's rearward raiding tactics had for the most part failed due to Healy's vigilance.

''But our combat reports state that the Tau function well in desert conditions, what if we somehow manage to capture the facility, if the Tau don't decide to blow it first, and cut us off in the desert? It would be a worse disaster than Greenhammer'' the bulldog Colonel said. Referencing the abortive offense launched two weeks ago that lost the Guard army three regiments.

Healy's forehead creased and Nealsen's faced blanched, they remembered that fiasco all too well.

''I'm sure Xio, Jensen and Dorr would appreciate any attempt to avenge them'' Healy said smoothly, naming the three commanders of the Karnak, Vahallan and Vendoland regiments that where destroyed.

''As long as we can maintain a good rearward supply line, we should be good'' stated Nealsen.

''Besides' Loric interjected, ''The Tau would never expect us to strike in the desert, our intelligence and combat reports indicate they are strapped for manpower, having shifted most of their troops northwards into the Newark downs'' he said.

''What's to stop the dammed xenos from blowing the place then?'' questioned the old Colonel. I've really got to learn his name, thought Basiclus, he didn't like being in the dark about the identities of the commanders.

Although he has studied the command manifest of the Guard commanders operating on Karovioa he had not thought the information important, mentally he assinsghed himself an extra hour of punishment duty in the firing ranges for the mistake.

''Yes'' he interjected, several heads turned towards him. ''I apologize for the interruption.'' The Captain stated. ''But I would assume the purpose for my Astartes is too take the facility?'' he questioned.

''Exactly'' Loric nodded, ''You are to take the facility, mine regiment, the 39th, and a Astartes company will take Traknor Primary and secondary'' he brought up the images of two large buildings with a tap of his left arm.

''But there will need to be a relief effort'' Laetres guessed. His brothers looked at him; he unusually didn't ask so many questions at briefings, preferring to take in information, what had changed?

Loric nodded and grinned. ''You are a smart man Captain-'' he replied.

''Sergeant,'' Laetres interrupted.

''Excuse me?''

''I'm a sergeant'' Laetres explained. ''First sergeant, Second company, Alerei Laetres'' he stated proudly.

''I apologize, not familiar with you ranks there, you all look the same to me'' the Colonel explained

The same? Laetres wondered Basiclus was tall and gaunt cheeked with dark, close cropped hair, was Kommneus was fair and noble with blonde hair, while he was bald and war-scarred.

''Thank you sergeant'' Basiclus said, Laetres was silenced.

''I'm afraid that we have spend much time together to the point where we can pick out individual details much easier than strangers.'' he said smoothly.

What's he doing? Laetres wondered, he would have taken time to chastise this Loric for the implied insult. But then he saw his Captain's guile, he was a very diplomatic man, apparently, he decided, not just a killer.

''I would need another company to escort the relief effort led by The Tallarn and the Malnians under Prince Naladin and Colonel Barrgin'' he said. Obviously the Barrign was the Malnian, the Captain summarized.

''Take the facility before the Tau can blow it up; hard and fast, that is how the astartes operate, I believe, Captain'' Loric said. Basiclus nodded.

''Our course, that's what he we do'' he stated.

This is what a Captain did. An Astartes Captain was more than a mere warrior; he was a diplomat and lord. While many in the chapter distrusted the Guard, Basiclus embraced his allies and their skills.

''I have hear many good things about the people of Elysia, I hope you and your men won't prove me wrong?'' Basiclus questioned. Loric grinned.

''Our course not''


	2. Gloryhounds

**Disclaimer: This is inspired by the Battlegrounds series and is done with the full approval of TheLoneHunter. His locations and refernces are done with his full permission.**

**Claws's Glory**

**Chapter 2**

* * *

**The Primary**

_Traknor Primary station is one of the cleanest and well ran stations in the sub-sector, the employees of Traknor take great pride in their help of the citizens of Karovioa Primaris. Fresh clean water is what the mineral company strives fro. Quality is important, A friendly and helpful attitude is common._

_**-Guide to the Cities of Karovioa, .M41. 931. Twenty-second edition**__._

* * *

**Above the Astartes Drop Zone-Traknor Primary.**

Librarian Zalk Chemosian sat aboard his retraining harness as he and the brothers of squad Parnus plummeted straight down in a fiery contrail towards Traknor Primary station. His force sword was in the weapons harness before him. Clakus, warrior-brother next to him was covered in purity seals and finished checking the seal of his plasma gun one last time.

Across Sergeant Parnus sat still, helmet on. Chemosian's own helmet was off, he preferred it that way, there was something about it that made his psychic senses tingle at not having the feel of air on his skin.

The numbers on the chronometer ticked down, showing how close the final descent was for the brothers of Parnus, lights flashed from the runes on the ceiling and the pods went straight down.

Originally he was supposed to stay with Basiclus's Second, and Demertius would go with the Fifth as usual. But Parnus changed all that when he came to his personal prayer cell. Nikarnus Parnus had entered in the simple black bodyglove worn before the armor was donned. ''It's been a while Zalk'' he had simply said. Chemosian had been sitting, meditating in his spartan quarters.

''No title brother?'' he replied, barely shifting.

''We know each other well enough, your are not alone, just because you're a pyrokene'' Nikarnus retorted. ''You're too aloof, I already told you about that Zalk''

The Librarians shifted and got upon. ''I don't feel much of a connection anymore since we last parted ways seven years ago.'' Back then Parnus had been promoted to Veteran status and Chemosian to Epistolary.

''Then talk to me, I always valued your insight'' Nikarnus insisted. ''You remember us! Nikarnus and Zalk! The two best hunters in the Hyro''

''That?'' Chemosian reminiscence briefly. The two of them as boys, troublemakers really, he the witch-boy of the tribe, supposedly born under a cloudless sky, and Nikarnus, the hunters son.

Both made and odd pair, the two had set out and slain their first fire cat together, taking it's hide back to the Fortress-settlement, that took place almost two centuries ago, but Chemosian could still remember it.

''Is it because of the daemonic that has you so strained Zalk-''

''Don't talk about that so lightly!'' Chemosian snapped, then coughed briefly at his friend's surprised expression. ''I apologize for my outburst Nikarnus-'' he began.

''Don't be, I felt that evil at Dalu, and can only imagine what it must be like for a psyker''' Nikarnus stated a matter-as-fact. ''I'm not like you, I can't see your mind, sometimes I wish I could'' he apologized.

''Then I tell you this, Don't. Ever. Wish that'' Chemosian said, turning fully around.

''The trails I went through, I went through all that you did brother, and more, tests alone, watched only by guard servitors programmed to gun you down at the slightest hint of daemonic possession, the implantation of the psychic hood…..'' he trailed off.

Quickly he recovered. ''Never mind that. What did you come for?'' he questioned Nikarnus.

The other marine bowed. ''Share the Anointing of the Ash with my squadmates'' he requested simply.

The anointing, an old combat suspicion really. On the Eagle Claws homeworld of Asclepieion the majority of the techno-barbarian tribes believed the Emperor to be a sky god who lived among the Eagles. Not so the Hyroites, they lived in the Hyro mountain range, where several volcanoes resided, both active and dormant. They made a harsh living among the ash and rock, ever mindful of the fire-breathing predators and the lava flows.

The Hyroites believed that the emperor was a phoenix who lived in Mt. Plyok, and that he was the king of all creatures, but the fire beasts of the mountains foremost. The tribe believed that he lived every day and died every night, only to be reborn the next day and so forth. When the volcanoes erupted it said the Emperor was expressing his emotions. Warriors of the Hyroites gathered the ashes after the firestorm had abated and waited for them to cool properly.

Then they adorned themselves with it, on their armor and bodies, believing that it would call the Emperor's attentions to them and let him see their deeds and guide their weapons to kill their enemies. The Hyroites who where inducted into the chapter knew the story was not exactly true. But they still brought it into the chapter, where it spread to some other non-Hyroite recruits.

Not all in the chapter approved of it, Captain Kommneus was one. Basiclus allowed it. Lakaris was uncaring. The Anointing was the peculiar quirk of the sub-sect of the chapter cult.

Chemosian had not done it in a decade.

He thought about it.

''Fine''

He shared the ash with Nikarnus Parnus, with Gilwe, the large heavy weapons marine and Clakus, the quiet, religious brother, and the rest of the 5th Company's Third Tactical Squad. He cut open his palm and drew blood before it clotted. Then he mixed it with ash brought from the foot of Mt. Plyok, he anointed the shoulder guards and faces of each of his brothers.

Together they called upon their father, the Phoenix Emperor to watch their deeds, see the glorious acts wrought in his name, guide their weapons and purge all mercy in their twin hearts.

That was all redundant when concerned with the astartes of course.

* * *

**Aboard the Sword of the Emperor-Nine hours before the drop**

''What's bothering you sir?'' Marius asked his command, Captain Gaius Kommneus.

''Well, What do you _think_ is bothering me Marius?'' Kommneus snapped. They had both just come form the armament rituals, their bodies sheathed in purple power armor and their weapons readied and sanctified, their armor was anointed with lapping oils and fresh purity seals.

''Sir?'' the sergeant asked.

''You can talk freely now, we are in the Halls of the ancients here, they are asleep, none of them are going to talk and Galba isn't around to tend to his precious regulators'' Kommneus sighed.

''Is this about the drop?'' he asked.

''Of course it's about the drop Marius, you don't think the Fifth is going to get out of this one without a beating will you? We already lost Quintius and his entire squad'' he explained.

''I trust the Second captain-'' Marius began.

''Well you shouldn't'' Kommneus cut him off. ''I've heard a lot about him even before I meant him.

''I was at Qunal II, do you know how fast he raced by the Second to kill the chaos cult leader? Dammed fast I tell you, he left the third to clean up the mess'' The fifth captain sneered.

''Don't you think Antigonus may be a little biased?'' Marius questioned.

''Antigonus is an arrogant ass, but he is a truthful ass at that, plus we all saw what he did at Ravenna, launching a thunderhawk assault during an orbital bombardment just to catch the Eldar off guard! That's what the Sons of Russ do! Not the inheritors of Guilliman!'' he exclaimed.

''It worked'' Marius shrugged. Kommneus mentally signed, this was the reason why he had Marius on his command squad, safely away from commanding an actual squad, he made a good second in command and fighter, but was not especially independent or brilliant.

He also had the bait of believing the best on everyone.

''It was dammed dangerous, he wants glory, I can see it in his eyes, he may speak well but he wants to win.'' the captain said.

''And that's a bad thing?'' his sergeant replied.

''It's a bad thing when he is willing to step on the heads of others just to get to the top'' Kommneus explained. ''He already got Lakaris killed-''

''Lakaris isn't dead'' Marius interrupted.

''That's not the point, he's not going to command again,''

''I don't think the second captain would send an entire company just to bait the Tau? He's got the Elysians supporting us as well and I heard from Parnus that Chemosian is coming along'' Marius stated.

''He talked to me in his personal quarters, have me a nice speech on drawing the Tau into a trap, being the anvil.'' He snorted. '' He just wants to swoop in and get the glory, Antigonus knew him as an initiate back then'' Kommneus growled.

''Well we don't know that until the Tau come'' Marius suggested.

''That's why I'm afraid of'' Kommneus said dryly.

* * *

**Traknor Primary- Zero Hour**

Hurling through the air went the drop pods of the Eagle Claws strike force, mostly drawn from the brothers of the 5th Company. They plummeted through the atmosphere like comets towards Traknor Primary. The Primary was equipped with orbital quad guns and flak batteries mounted on the surface of the refinery, but these where too slow and inaccurate to react to the rapidly approaching drop waves of the Eagle Claws.

The first few slammed into the ground, disgorging squads of astartes, three of the pods opened up, revealing the forms of Honored Brothers Xenaphon, Caius, and Licinus, the latter two now outfitted as Ironclad siege breakers. Kommneus's pod landed right after the first hit the ground, the clamps digging in, the doors abruptly blowing as the space marines exited into combat formations perfected by countless drills.

The defenders themselves where only just rousing themselves to action, sporadic bouts of las-fire and pulse rounds began to answer the approach of the invading marine troops that where advancing. ''Welis, Yonas, Phocas, covering fire, the rest advance'' Kommneus ordered, as the Fifth Company rapidly responded to his orders like a well-oiled machine. Bolter fire quickly answered the Tau defenders, keeping them pinned down.

The Ancient assault wave stormed forward, ignoring the hail of pulse rifle shots and turret defense guns, Xenaphon's assault cannon blazing as Caius and Licinus clashed with the rockrete outer wall of the refinery. The immense siege drill of Caius spun, the seismic hammers of Licinus crackled with energy and they smashed their way into the wall, firing their meltas to clear the thick walls in advance of their brothers.

With a mighty crack the two dreadnoughts working together ripped a massive hole in the wall, sending enemy defenders tumbling down. Thick streams of fire issued from form the heavy flamers of the Ironclads and the Dreadnought swept into the refinery.

Kommneus waved his power sword back and forth. ''Pure Hearts! Pure Souls! Pure Blades!'' he yelled and the advance squads of the Fifth swept in, Squad Welis remaining beind to provide more covering fire.

It was here Kommneus got a good look at the enemy, While there was the familiar form of the Tau Fire Warriors shooting at the advancing marines, there where dozens of Human auxiliaries. Kommneus's enhanced vision made out a mixture of plundered Imperial flak armor and Tau style carapace, he saw blue tattoos in the fashion of the Tau and many with topknots. They where mostly armed with looted lasguns.

Many of the enemy force on Karovioa where human auxiliaries, ether offworld troops that where raised on Tau controlled worlds or local conscripts, send to fight for their alien masters against the Imperium. Here it was mostly the latter, with a few of the former thrown in to boost the morale of the human auxiliaries. Kommneus leveled his storm bolters and fired a burst, blowing three of the traitors apart.

''Nero! Yonas! Close in with the flamers! Phocas cover them! Advance and purge!'' he shouted in the chapter combat-cant. Quickly the Eagle Claws followed his commands, disciplined volleys of bolter fire cutting down human auxiliaries while the astartes flamers went into work.

A thick stench of burning flesh filled the air along with the screams of the auxiliaries as thick gouts of flames brunt them to death, blackening and incinerating flesh and bone, spreading smoke and death. Squad Parnus came up form the rear, the Plasma gun of Calkus firing, the marine screaming the lines of the Canticle of Hatred as he did so. Gilwe covered the rest of the squad, heavy bolter spitting death.

Chemosian went alongside his old friend, blasts of roiling green flames spearing death to the Tau as Parnus revved his chainsword, raising his blade arm to lead his's squad's advance around the enemy flank. They came upon the rear mineral distillers, las-rounds pattering of their purple power armor. Bolter rounds answered, blowing their enemies to smithereens. It was then, out of the smoke and flame Chemosian got a good look at them.

The human auxiliaries where different than the Tau fire warriors, they where a mix of the local conscripts, in looted PDF uniforms, and off-world traitors, who spoke the Tau language and covered themselves with blue tattoos and topknots. They wore Tau style armor. All of them where armed with a mix of looted lasguns and autoguns, with a few pulse rifles wielded solely by the off-world auxiliaries, gifted to them by their Tau masters.

They where good, he had to admit, but only human, the Astartes moved quick and fast, closing in before any ample amount of returning fire was brought to bear, bringing in their gene-enhanced advantages.

They moved quickly, securing the mineral distillers. Xenaphon stomped behind them , the barrels of his assault cannon spinning, flames licking from the edges of his heavy flamer limb. Smoke billowed from the rear stacks, forming a halo of black.

''Brother-Librarian, we are to smash into the wall'' Xenaphon rumbled, striding forward, the brothers of Parnus moving quickly out of the way of the gilded and bronze giant he brought a fist down into the rockcerte wall.

It caved in, immediately, through a storm of pulse shots and las rounds, the dreadnought brought his heavy flamer about and send a tornado of fire into the secondary refinery center.

Brief screams where cut off as the assault cannon spoke again. ''Come over Parnus, I suggest you secure the center, Welis is coming to take the minerals refineries, I cannot go in, it is too small for me''' the dreadnought rumbled.

''It seems like everything is too small these days, just children now'' the war machine mumbled off and stomped off around the corner. Nikarnus stared in confusion. ''It's his mind, I didn't expect him right n the middle of combat'' Chemosian explained.

''Then let's go'' Nikarnus moved, first in, followed by Clakus and another astartes.

They came into a charnel house, two dozen auxiliaries and several Tau fire warriors, lay dead, caught in the close halls of the secondary center, having no room to take cover, they where slaughtered. The astartes moved over the bodies and rounded the corner, where they came face to face with a dozen more auxiliaries. The lead traitor gave a surprised squawk briefly, but he and his men where blown apart with a volley of bolter rounds.

The hallway was long and covered with several Tau symbols that looks to be hastily added on. Others where instructions on proper cleanliness in Low Gothic. The entire place was short and cramped. Nikarnus indicated that the squad should move down the hallway where the rest came with a single chop of the hand. The squad split, one in front and another handing back to cover them if things went wrong.

They entered then into some sort of information facility. Footsteps sounded behind them. Parnus turned, bolters raised. But it was only the familiar forms of Squad Welis, armor smoke-stained and blood-splattered.

''We have the flamer ready Nikarnus'' their sergeant said. ''Kommneus's orders, clear out the warrens'' he stated.

Nikarnus nodded, mentioning the rest of Parnus away. ''Go ahead'' he mentioned. ''We didn't scout far yet brother, so he cautious''

They went though halls and room filled with discarded paper work and old mineral processing machines that drew dirt and mineral from the water deep within the desert sands. Then they turned the corner into the long narrow hallway. Extending back hundreds of feet it was quite big, it could fill over a hundred people.

And indeed it did.

It was filled with dozens upon dozens of human auxiliaries, they where apparently in the middle of constructing a makeshift barricade at the entrance to the main mineral processing center. They had clearly come across the intersection to the main and secondary halls.

Time froze for a second. There was over a hundred traitors and xenos, far too many for even the marines.

'' Fall back-'' Chemosian barely had time to issue the order before a storm of las-rounds impacted as the Tau and traitor Guard opened fire. Four marines where slain by the sheer amount of firepower and more and more foes hurried into firing positions.

Fortunately the marines got lucky, a stray las round hit Squad Welis's flamer pack, turning it and the unfortunate marine into a raging inferno, smoke and flame lashed across the halls, obscuring the vision and aim of the enemy. Parnus and Welis fell back quickly as pulse rounds shot around them. They fell back towards the corner. Nikarnus was the last in line when a pair of pulse shots tore through a weak spot in his hip armor and went through the side.

Nikarnus went down in a heap. Chemosian turned around and cursed deeply, around the corner where the running footsteps of the Tau, over a dozen auxiliaries where coming around the cover. He charged one hand with green flame and sent into down the corridor, roasting the fist dozen into charred skeletons. He heard the footsteps retreating away. Good, that would keep them away.

Clakus had set aside his plasma gun and hauled Nikarnus back around the corner, Welis checked the wound. ''He's alive, but I don't know how that could change'' he reported.

''What do we do milord'' he addressed the Librarian.

Chemosian looked at a nearby mineral collector. He gestured to two marines. They understood in an instant. They uprooted it quickly, ripping it away from the steel bolts with superhuman strength.

It was quite large and Gilwe took up a position behind it along with Clakus.

''We are covering their rear, if Kommneus is pressing the assault then we are their only escape option'' he said. Even now there was the stamping of feet and the crackle of las-bolts.

''Therefore we have to hold whatever the cost may be'' he proclaimed. ''Welis avenge your brothers, Parnus, the Emperor is watching your deeds, do not fail them'' he said, reminding them of the Ash.

Chemosian never made a speech before, that was reserved for Captain Basiclus and Chaplain Britannicus, but the brothers of Welis and Parnus cheered. Well, he thought, it can't be that hard.

Then there was a loud crash and a swooshing sound, along with screams. The familiar sound of bolter fire reached their ears. They shoved the mineral collector out the way, two marines remained guarding Nikarnus. The sight that greeted Chemosian was one of utter devastations. Xenaphon was standing in the room, the top smoke-stacks barely scraping the top of the hallway. Licinus and Caius where behind him, several large holes torn into the walled intersection..

Behind them emerged the shapes of dozens of astartes, led by Kommneus. He raised his power sword. The rest of the marines swept forward. In the enclosed hallway, caught on three sides by Kommneus, Chemosian and Xenaphon, the Tau and the traitors where slaughtered in the cramped close quarters. Thick sheets of green flame joined the bright orange flames from the normal flamers and waves of bolter fire slaughtered the enemy.

They where all dead in under a minute.

Another astartes had died.

Chemosian walked over to the main body of astartes. He was walking on corpses at this point. He spotted the white-armored form of Apothecary Nerva. He strode over quickly.

''Parnus is wounded badly, I don't know the extent'' he reported, the apothecary nodded and walked off. There was a rumble of gears and a squelching noise as the great feet of Xenaphon crushed the corpses beneath his feet.

Chemosian wondered how he knew they where there. As he could not read the mind of the marine behind the warded hull of the dreadnought, he asked instead.

''Honored one, how did you know-'' he was cut off by the Ancient.

''I didn't' he rumbled. ''I got tired of waiting outside, so I tired to find a way in, I could not, so'' he waved a power fist at the destroyed wall. ''I made a door'' he said.

Chemosian was at a loss for words. '' I can't imagine the captain will be very pleased'' he finally forced out.

''I'm not'' came the sound of Kommneus's voice. ''We are supposed to take this place _intact_'' he said. Xenaphon did something equivalent to a shrug.

''It worked didn't it?'' he said. Before he stamped off. ''I don't like this place now, it's getting to cramped now.

Kommneus removed his helmet and ran his finger through his blonde hair. ''Emperor help me but the Honored ones are so-'' he struggled to find the right word.

''-Eccentric?'' Chemosian finished for him. Kommneus looked in confusion before understand dawned.

''Oh right, psyker''

* * *

**Traknor Primary**

In the aftermath of the carnage the Eagle Claws began the cleaning up. The entire facility was over two miles long, with a primary and secondary complexes, with secondary water distillers on the outside with the primary ones buried beneath the rockrete. Belsarius and his scouts had come in the aftermath of the battle, taking time to report in before leaving again to booby-trap the surrounding area.

Techmarines Galba and Epidemos, came in with the next wave. Along with the thunderhawks that disgorged the chapter's heavy equipment. The Eagle Claws prepared quickly, knowing that the Tau would soon react.

Tarantula turrets where air-dropped, rubble shifted and walls covered with improvised fortification under the watchful eyes of Epidemos who turned the place into a temporary fortress. Galba did a quick switch of weapons in field, a rare and risky feat for an astartes dreadnought, with the help of the several brothers they lifted and attached new weapons mounts to Brothers Caius and Licinus for long range combat.

Apothecary Nerva, after recovering the geneseed of the slain, took Parnus under his personal care with three others, seven marines had been killed in the first assault, the low casualties thank to Kommneus's use of the lighting assault and close quarters combat, where the advantages of the astartes counted for more than the numbers and technology of the enemy.

''He will live'' Nerva told Chemosian and his squad. ''He will only walk again if I can conduct corrective surgery aboard the _Sword of the Emperor_'' he reported. Nikarnus was now in a meditative healing trance.

The damage was severe, the twin pulse shots had been very lucky, going through a weak spot it the armor, before coming out the side, a normal man would have been killed, but Nikarnus survived due to this redundant organs and gene-enhanced body.

Chemosian felt concern for his friends, but not s much regret as he would have thought. He had seen brothers die all the time of course, and while the event was regrettable it was not unsettling for an astartes, whose minds where hard-wired for combat. But still, he thought, he should feel something? Or was it just his own distance as a psyker? He had not seen Nikarnus in ages and now he was badly wounded right after the Anointing of the Ash, that spoke of an ill omen.

He shoved it away into his mind, he had the brothers of Squad Parnus to lead now.

* * *

**Traknor Desert.**

The Elysians came, hundreds of Valkyries and Vendetta gunships, swarming over the sands. They has launched their flight right before the marines had dropped in, escorted by Imperial Navy fighters as escorts. Preparation was one of Healy's good traits. For all his odd personality traits, he had a distinct ability to learn after a mistake was made. He had studied the war reports on Taros thoroughly and was determined not to suffer the same fate.

His process was slow, but careful something that annoyed several of his commanders who wanted to prosecute the war as rapidly as possible. But Healy was adamant, everything was completed. Each airfield for the Navy fighters was carefully constructed by the Tallarn engineer battalions and heavily fortified, the greater part of two regiments was assigned the airfields alone.

This paid off. The Tau attempted to attack the fields, but unlike on Taros they found them to be heavily fortified and defended by thousands of Guardsmen. Only a few of them had been destroyed so far.

For the control of the air Healy paid the price of speed. His conquest was taking far longer than it should be. The Crusade office was beginning to look into his actions. So far they had been blunted by his undeniable success.

Colonel Loric was currently thanking Healy's good sense, for an air-assault regiment to go in without air support was tantamount to suicide. The 39th would not repeat the mistakes of the 23rd on Taros.

The regiment was divided into two groups, the first and second wave, the regiment did not have enough Valkyries to transport all of it's men at once, so the first wave headed under the command of Loric while the second would launch when the initial wave's Valkyries returned. The wave split into two groups, half of the Elysians under Colonel Loric and Commissar Grantz. The other went in under Major Whitefield, he would take the second mineral complex to the northwest of Traknor primary.

The Elysians went into Traknor Minoris with vigor and a well-executed battleplan. Valkyrie and Vendettas strafed the complex as hundreds of Elysians dropped from the assault carriers into the fray. Countless Dozens died in a firestorm of pulse rounds and las-bolts. But the Elysians where undeterred, they fought like devils, securing the courtyard and dropping in heavy weapons, slowly but surely they gained progress.

Major Whitefield sent in kill-platoons of men armed with flamers and meltaguns to clear out the traitor auxiliaries and the Tau fire warriors, despite heavy casualties Whitefield pressed them onward. Within four hours the facility was in Imperial hands, hurriedly the Elysians began the same processes as the Eagle Claws, hurriedly turning Traknor Minoris into a makeshift fortress.

They would need it.

* * *

**Traknor Primary**

Loric's Valkyrie had landed in the courtyard, disgorging his command squad and Commissar Mishka Grantz. He landed cat-like on the ground before the Valkyrie had even landed.

Behind him the assault carrier landed. Mishka stumbled out. ''Don't do that'' she scolded. ''What the hell where you thinking! That breaks almost every regulation in the book'' she was upset.

As a commissar normally that would be a flogging offense for a trooper to do that. However Mishka did not think it would be a good idea to order such a thing in the middle of a war zone while surrounded by Elysians. Plus the astartes where waiting for Loric.

''It's fine'' Loric waved her away. ''I'm a lot tougher than a normal manjack'' he tapped his metal chest plates. ''All adamantium and steel here'' he boasted as the astartes took notice.

''Colonel, the brother-captain is wanting for you'' A large astartes sergeant came up to the Valkyrie and indicted the direction with the sweep of one large armored hand.

''Thanks'' he nodded. Loric turned to the commissar by his side. ''Let's go Mishka, have you ever met a marine before?'' he asked.

Mishka Grantz was a Vahallan women in her late thirties, although you couldn't tell that from her Schola upbringing. She was in her late twenties and had red hair, blue yes and a stern face..

She shook her head. ''I have never, you sound as if you have met them before?'' What's it like? I've only seen them in chapels on the Schola before I was posted here.''

''It's an interesting experience, I've really only heard about them a few times before, in this kind of regiment you learn to appreciate people who fight like you do'' Loric replied.

''And I see the good captain now'' he said as he stopped Kommneus, Chaplain Scipo and Chemosian.

''Brother-Captain, a pleasure to see you'' the colonel greeted.

''Colonel Loric, it's good to see you have arrived? How fast are your men arriving here?'' Kommneus questioned.

''Only companies 1 through 6, we've airdropped in our sentinels here, companies 6 through eleven are at the Minoris'' Loric listed. ''The rest are coming in the next wave, from my past estimates they should come in by tomorrow night if they hurry''

Kommneus waved over a nearby marine. ''Sergeant Welis, get Epidemos and tell him to coordinate digging actions with the Elysians, Colonel who have you got in charge?'' he questioned him.

''Captain Greene, it's the chap with the two scars over his lip.'' The captain nodded and Welis left.

''And our air support?'' Chemosian asked.

''Healy has them rotating around the clock coverage, he really is putting a lot into this operation, only naturally really after the disaster at Greenhammer'' Loric recalled. He shrugged

''Anyway do you think the Tau are really going to come? Healy put eight regiments on the offensive against the Tau near Newark downs'' Loric asked.

''They are going to come, they should arrive by the end of the day'' Kommneus reported.

Loric raised an eyebrow. ''That seems to be an awfully close assumption''

''It's not an assumption, Colonel, we ate their brains'' Kommneus said.

''Excuse me?'' spoke Mishka, visibly shocked. ''What did you say-''

''One of the genetic enhancements of the is called the Omophagea, we can absorbed information by eating the flesh of our enemies, in this case the brain'' Kommneus stated. It was a private little thing he enjoyed, freaking out Guard officers with that information.

''In this case the brain works well, where we can gain the memories and ideas that existed. Normally we would just have a Librarian psychically interrogate them, but we killed all of the defenders in the way in''

Mishka's mouth was opened, like a fish, Loric was nonplused. Chemosians's opinion of him rose higher. He had a strong will this one.

''It took several tires but we found the one who send a communications message to the nearest Tau cadre of the attack, doubtless they are mobilizing a counter-strike as we speak.'' Kommneus said.

''In other words Colonel, we should be expecting an attack in several hours from now'' Chemosian said.

''I see Loric nodded, deep in though,. ''I think that's very lucky''

''Why do you think that?'' Chemosian asked.

''It's such a bother when we Elysians wait for the enemy right? We are fast drop troops'' he explained. The marine nodded, they knew that style of battle well.

''I'm not scared at all, I'm excited, let them come. We are going to avenge the 23rd. We are going to perform the drop and we are going to succeed, sure as a grav-hawk'' he proclaimed.

''You will have that chance soon then''


	3. Councils and Movements

**Author's Notes: This is the third chapter. Not much fighting unfourtunately, just character interaction. I've also had several refernces with TheLoneHunter's Battlegrounds to tie this in.**

Disclaimer: This is inspired by the Battlegrounds series and is done with the full approval of TheLoneHunter. His locations and refernces are done with his full permission.

* * *

**C****laws' Glory**

**Councils and Movements**

* * *

**Eagle Claws Homeworld of Asclepieon-255 years ago.**

Basiclus stood in one of the many vehicle hangers in the depths of the Aquila Keep, the Eagle Claws Fortress-Monastery. He was there with eight others, the rest of his squad at the time. He had finally been made a full marine, he was now accepted into the 9th Devastator Company, after eight years of training and warfare, conducted out in the field alongside the full battle brothers as a scout marine.

He wore full power armor now, purple and grey plate with gold trim. A winged double-headed eagle symbol covered the chestplate, and a silver skull was present on the knee pads of his suit. When he had first donned the suit, he marveled how different it was than carapace armor. Putting on the helmet and having access to the full auto-senses of the suit, and the full servo-assisted strength was an almost magical experience for him.

At first he felt uncomfortable in it, the implantation of his black carapace still new, the surgical scars still fresh upon his body. But he was informed most marines eventually saw their armor as a second skin. He was told that power armor was cumbersome even for those who where trained in it's use for normal humans, like Inquisitors and Sororitas, not so for the astartes, the enhanced strength and black carapace made the armor operate with incredible ease.

Basiclus could crush a rock easily when armored and could barely notice the difference with power armor, compared to carapace armor in movement. He asked about why they used such armor to his training sergeant, Harken.

''Because lad, the full suit of power armor still has it' limitations in stealth, and it has a bigger profile, carapace is smaller, and does not require the black carapace to function yet'' he answered.

Basiclus had learned much, , how to use the advanced heavy weapons, how to use jump packs and advanced sword fighting techniques, he was required to memorize parts of the Codex Astartes, and how to operate vehicles.

''As you are a knight in the service of the Emperor, so is the Rhino your steed. Honor it , respect it, see that it's needs are met, and it shall serve you well through all the battles you face'' Techmarine Koskos said.

He was a strange sight, with sections of his dark purple armor plate painted a deep rust red of the Mechanicus. Half his face was incrusted with bionics, and odd whirling sounds where made whenever he walked. His power armor was modified extensively, with the symbol of the Mechanicus on one pad and a pair of servo arms that hung over him and protruded like the limbs of a Scarlet Death-tree, one of the death world's most dangerous plant life.

''Those are the words of Guilliman, Brother'' Basiclus said. It still felt strange now to call these men who where like demigods to him, brother, it was an odd feeling he relished.

Koskos nodded. ''The Rhino is the mainstay armored personnel carrier of the astartes, it transports you into battle'' he lectured. ''The Razorback, by comparison is a worthy weapon, but the ability to transport a full tactical squad is invaluable'' he said.

There where two vehicles pulled out, a purple Rhino with silver trim and a similarly painted Razorback, both bore the eagle's claw of the Chapter's symbol. The rhino had an image of an eagle's head in front.

''Normally the brothers of the chapter strive to arrive in orbit and close with the enemy.'' The senior brother said.

''However-'' he continued.

''-Sometimes one cannot do that, whether the enemy is deploying orbital defenses, or is in a void shielded position, or if one does not have command of the air, then one must land away and go by ground''

''That, is what the Rhino is for'' Koskos said.

''What about the Razorback?'' Basiclus said. ''Surely the advantages of an extra heavy weapon would offset the reduced transport space?'' he asked.

''Because the extra transport space makes up for that'' Antigonus said. Basiclus's features stiffened.

Antigonus was a blonde, hard-jawed marine, recruited from the Syzor, same as Basiclus, in the same batch as him. The two where as different as night and day, and while Basiclus was told he looked like a gaunt-faced scarecrow, Antigonus fit the profile of a noble knight. And yet it was the opposite, with Basiclus being of noble birth and Antigonus being a common hunter's son. Antigonus seemed to take his noble birth as a challenge to him, as if ne needed to prove himself.

Although the astartes where supposed to leave those things behind, it sometimes still remained.

''Brother Antigonus is correct'' Basiclus hears Koskos say. ''A full tactical squad is more versatile ultimately on the field of battle, and is more maneuverable than the Razorback in urban environments, and can perform a greater amount of tasks'' he explained.

''So that is why the Rhino is needed, in battle it's lack of weapons is covered by the Predators and the Land Raiders, but that is another lesson for another time'' Koskos said.

''When in battle, you will most likely take part in everything from simple patrols to immense blitzkriegs across the ground, during these actions the Rhino is invaluable,'' he said.

''Will we learn how to command these on the field of battle?'' Basiclus questioned. Koskos regarded the boy emotionlessly, this one had ambition.

''If you become a ranking officer in the chapter-'' And Koskos could already tell this was his most likely fate, with the drive he had.

''Like that will happen'' Antigonus muttered under his breath, Basiclus merely sneered back at him.

''-Then you most likely will, although a Razorback is more suited to the command squad anyway'' Koskos explained.

He gestured to the Rhino. ''I will show you how to operate it in case the driver is killed by enemy fire, the Rhino is a notoriously resilient transport, even the untrained can affect repairs'' he stated.

'''Now come, I will teach you''

* * *

**100-Miles south of Traknor Primary**

They came across the sands, through sun-baked rock, fields of ash waste and hot dirt. Through the beating heat and the winding pathways, through rocky valleys they came.

Ghostfire was their name.

They where the Shas of the Fire Rock cadre, of the Fire Caste Command Karovioa, part of the planet's garrison force. They where a Stealth suit squadron, part of an elite reconnaissance and long-range patrol team. Normally Tetra squadrons would do this, but they had been sorely needed elsewhere, so now it was the Ghostfire squad that was sent instead.

They moved across the rocks, their armor blending in perfectly, casting faint shimmer-shapes across the heat, their sensors piercing the surrounding landscape for life.

''It's supposed to be near here right?'' the voice of Bal'ya, the second in command of the team asked.

''Negative'' Shas'vre Val'try replied, the team leader of Ghostfire.

''We are just arriving really, it's probably nothing, the _Gue'la_ are just moving some supply convoys, depending in the strength, we might actually get to go out and get to work'' he said.

They had been doing this for months, harrying the Imperial Guard supply columns, for whatever reason the humans were obsessed with guarding it with everything they had. It was not the weather ether. The weather was pretty nice by Tau standards, and they where sealed within the Stealth suits anyway.

It was the boredom of not finding anything.

''See anything?'' Val'try asked.

''Negative'' the rest of the team replied.

Val'try hopped over several rocks with the aid of the suit's jet pack, and then into a low mesa.

''We're almost at the end of the patrol range'' he said. ''Let's turn bac-''

''Found it!'' came the excited voice of Bal'ya over the suit comm.

Val'try felt excitement. He rapidly turned around, engaging the jet pack to assist his jump onto the next hill. Bal'ya was far away, a few dozen feet, he gunned his jet pack. Within moments he was next to his second.

''What did you find…..'' he trailed off, looking into the plains.

''Yeah, that's a lot of _gue'la_.''

* * *

**100-Miles south of Traknor Primary-Imperial landing zone-45 minuties later.**

Brother-Captain Basiclus walked down the length of the astartes vehicles, Rhinos, Razorbacks, Predators, Land Raiders and Whirlwinds where all lined up, the brethren of the 2nd and the 7th where lined up and ready beside each transport. The vehicles had been transported from orbit, and dropped in by Thunderhawk, they had all been triple-checked by the Techmarines and blessed with oils to sanctify the machine spirits.

Everything must work perfectly if they where to succeed.

Basiclus was well aware of the price at Traknor, if they failed they would probably suffer a severe loss to the Imperial military capacity. But if they succeeded then they would most likely win the war on Karovioa. He was a risk-taker. Nothing mattered to him, but the destruction of the enemy. Basiclus did not so much as take a shortcut, then go out and create his own easier path. That is what won his victories, and how he suffered his defeats.

He had lost before, he gambled that he could outrace the Speed Freeks at Harr's Reach, and was ambushed as a result, fighting the Dark Eldar on Toron had resulted on several lost battle brothers to the enemy. He had assigned himself ritual fasting and flogging for the mistake, and only ceased when he took the head of the Dark elder kabal lord with his sword and avenged the deaths of his brothers. But he had never really forgiven himself for that kind of mistake.

But Basiclus was not stupid. He was a cunning warrior and leader of men. He rarely made the same mistake twice.

He walked over to his command squad. Claudius, the apothecary to the 2nd, Camillus, the plasma gun bearer, Lucian, the sergeant, Paulus, another veteran brother with a crackling power halberd, and Stillcho, the standard bearer of the 2nd, who carried the collapsible banner in it's retracted form.

The Ten squads of the second stood ready. Laetres, Rezarin, Gnaeus, Kyriakos, Tor, the tacticals ready, Felixz and Gallus, the assault squads, Halteker and Livius, the stalwart devastators. Then there was the assorted brothers of the 7th, under their interim leader. Next to them was the honored brothers of the 1st. Fulgerion, Darius, Trajan, Rabix, and Sulla, all in their appointed transports.

Beyond them where hundreds of Imperial Guard vehicles, Chimeras and Leman Russes from the Malnian and Tallarn regiments, the Malnians where led by Major Asher, over a thousand of them, and Tallarns by Prince-General Naladin. Above them was the three Warhound titans. Even though they where the smallest of the god-machines, they still inspired awe in Basiclus.

He activated his comm.-link., reaching out to all his brothers. He then activated the Iron Halo on his suit's armor. It created a golden glow around his helm. He did it solely for inspiring effect.

''I don't need to tell you what's at stake here Brothers'' he let the words sink in.

''I know some of my critics accuse me of being a glory hound. We know how that turns out''' there was a chuckle.

''So I will tell you now, gloryhound or not, just get there, beside us stand the brave souls of the Guard, fight hard, steel their courage and show them an example of how the Emperor's own sons fight!'' he said.

They cheered.

''Go out and fight and kill, we race against time, We can't let Kommneus and he men have all the fun, now can we?'' they laughed again, deep-full-throated laughter. Some of the nearby Guardsmen where wondering what was going on.

''So go and fight, fight until your bolter runs out, until your sword breaks, until you throw your last grenade, will we will stop, we will not relent, we will fight on through a sea of blood!''

''We are the space marines. The eyes of the Emperor upon us. We can only fail him through complacence'' he paused.

''We will not fail him''

They cheered more.

Then the shot came.

* * *

**Traknor Desert**

Ghostfire, after seeing the thick concentrations of the Imperial troops, called in a nearby Devilfish of Pathfinders, attached as a rapid-response unit in the desert. It was the Shadoweye.

''How many of them are there?'' Gar'los asked Val'tyr.

''Several thousand, including the enhanced _gue'la_'' he said, moving along with his stealth suit. Gar'los nodded, shouldering a rail rifle, three drones accompanied him, hovering over the broken ground easily.

The rest of Ghostfire came along with the Pathfinder sniper on his mission. The cadre command has learnt of the concentration and sent Gar'los along in case any Imperial commanders where spotted.

''The Enhanced ones? I haven't seen them for a long time at all'' Gar'los mused.

''What are they like? I've only killed guardsmen'' Val'try asked.

The Adeptus Astartes had only made a few appearances in the ground war so far, only committing themselves to the most vital and important missions, their limited numbers not allowing them to do much else. For the Tau on Karovioa, they had seen precious little of hide or hair of the Marines since the battle of Dalu city, and even then it was only five cadres extracted from the desolate ruin.

''They where a challenge, you had to get careful shots with a pulse rifle, and even then you had to be careful if you really got them properly, they had much better armor and weapons than the regular _gue'la_'' he mused.

''We did a similar mission back on Gereziad you know, except it was a fortress, not an open field.'' Gar'los admitted.

''Who did that?''

''Shi'yon of Veiled Shadow who did it, turned out not to be the commander though''

''Where is he now? I liked hear it.''

''He's not here'' Gar'los said flatly''

''But you are still here?''

''I was wounded before the final mission, thus I was the only survivor of my group'' the pathfinder shas'vre said in a tone that made it clear he did not want to talk about it.

They came to a small alcove on the top of the plateau. They had an excellent view of the thousands of gue'la stretched across the vast desert waste below.

''There is a lot of them'' Val'try pointed out. ''Look I see the marines''

Indeed he could. Gar'los looked through the scope of the rail rifle. He looked through the screen of the targeting device. He could see thousands of imperials and dozens of marines. They are purple-armored, very similar to those in Gereziad. There where some minor differences in armor and heraldry though. He cycled through the image until he found what he was looking for.

''Is that one of their leaders?'' Val'try asked.

''Yeah, more ornate armor, although it's hard to tell with this group, this one is glowing, must be some sort of rank thing.'' he said.

'Why not get the Guard officers then?'' the Shas'Vre commander asked.

''We've already killed plenty, the Imperium can't replace marines as well as they can the regular _gue'la_, we don't understand why yet'' Gar'los replied.

He locked on.

''Well here we go''

He fired.

There was a light in the distance and a faint crack. The gue'la figure fell to the ground.

''Got him!'' the Pathfinder said with satisfaction.

Then the figure struggled back up.

''What the-?'' Gar'los had little to say as rockets began to arc over the horizon and into his position. A nearby explosion threw large rocks and debris into the air.

''Let's go'' Val'tyr said. ''We'll talk about that later'' he shouted. Moving off.

Gar'los grabbed the rail rifle and ran off as fast as he could.

* * *

**Traknor Desert-Imperial staging ground**

When the shot connected, there was panic in the ranks of the Guard as the marines swarmed around, readying weapons for an imminent attack. Whirlwinds tracked the shot to it's source with the machine augers and began firing.

Claudius ran over to Basiclus who was now standing very unsteady on his feet.

''My lord'' he shouted. He and Paulus grabbed Basiclus and moved his quickly into the armored bulk of his command Razorback. They sat him down in one of the communications chairs.

''Are you alright?'' Claudius asked, removing his golden helmet as he deactivated the Iron Halo. The captain's head was bruised.

''I'm fine'' he said, rubbing the wounds in annoyance. ''It's hard to focus now, I just need to have a few seconds'' he said. Claudius ignored him, stabbing the narthicum into his next.

''Arg! I told you I'm fine'' the captain snapped.

''You don't know that'' the apothecary fished a device form his belt and began scanning Basiclus. ''That weapon may have some odd side affects that we don't know about'' he said.

Then Lucian ran in. ''My lord, the rest of the force is moving into the tanks for their protection'' he reported. ''We have bombarded the area but the Tau seemed to have escaped'' he said.

Their was a beep. Basiclus and Lucian recognized it as an affirmative command from the days of their medical training. ''Well then'' the captain said as he shifted himself.

''I'm fine then''

Claudius pursed his lips. ''Very well then, but my duty is to watch over your health-''

''Don't worry about me'' Basiclus cut him off. ''I can function, I'm feeling better already'' he said, taking his helmet back and examining it carefully.

''You got lucky my lord, that shot, whatever it was, was almost completely absorbed by your Iron Halo field'' Lucian said. ''Almost all of the force it was taken by your field then'' he said smiling.

''What are you grinning about?'' Basiclus asked.

''Well my lord, it's the first time I say vanity save someone's life'' the sergeant said, lightly chuckling. Basiclus checked his Iron Halo.

''Yes I suppose that's ironic'' he said.

Then a sweating guardsman in a camouflaged uniform of the Tallarn regiments arrived. ''Sir, the honored Prince Naladin wishes to know of your condition'' he reported, his young sweat-streaked face was in awe at seeing the marine.

''I'm fine, tell the Prince that we are moving out now'' the captain said. Sitting back up, the rest of his command squad arrived, the guardsman leaving, darting through the purple armored astartes.

''Let's go''

* * *

**Traknor Desert**

The vast Imperial armored forces drove out, Hydras, Chimeras, Leman Russes, Salamanders and Hellhounds drove along the Rhinos, Predators, Razorbacks, Land Raiders, Whirlwinds and bikes of the Eagle Claws.

They came on a slow and steady pace, the route taken from an old Karovioan map that the Lord General's office had appropriated and planned out carefully for the shortest route available.

Major Jan Asher inched back into the compartment of his command chimera. He shut the hatch, closing off the billowing dust in the air. He eased down and sat on a nearby bench in the vehicle. He removed the air hose to his breath mask and removed it, revealing a face in his early thirties with dark brown hair and green eyes. ''Tough up there?'' Des Corlan, his vox-man asked him.

''Nope'' he answered. ''Just like home'' he said with a grin.

Malnia was a vast militarized hiveworld, the once verdant forests and fields turned into polluted ash wastes by millennia of pollution from the Hive factories that turned out weapons and tanks for the Guard.

''I wanted to see how bad the full sand was when we drove past it, a little grainer than Malnia though'' he said.

''The Tallarn don't seem to have a problem.'' Tess Ureled said. A woman who was the squad standard bearer. Tess, and all the women in the Malnian regiments where sterile, unable to bear children.

This was because Malnia was a world dedicated to war. The women on it where for the most part, forbidden to serve in the military, not for sexism, but for cold unfeeling logic, as Malnia was ruled by a military bureaucracy, who where concerned with only getting more soldiers available. Fertile women on the front lines can't help that. So they where remained home, while the commoner men where sent off into war, along with the women who could not produce, they where educated in boot camps from a young age and taught to wield a lasgun before they could walk.

Asher was a noble, he got to lead a more normal life than the commoners, whereas the commoners where simply assigned a woman to mate with before they left to fight, nobles could actually marry and have lasting relationships.

That did not mean Asher did not know how to fight or lead, from day one, he was educated on how to command guardsmen, how to duel and how to operate a bolt pistol and other weapons., and how to speak authoritatively. The officer class of the Malnian regiments where drawn from the nobility. Instead of the commoner's choice of becoming a factory worker, a soldier, or a civilian. They where simply a ruler, or officer.

He was told that he was to be wed to some noblewoman when the regiment was to be refounded. Until then he was spending as much time as he could spreading his wild oats. There was a delightful female tactician on the Lord General's staff he had become recently acquainted with……..

''Sir?'' asked Corlan.

''What?'' he was snapped back to reality.

''The other company commanders want to know what happened back there?''

''Oh, I see''

Barrgin's liver was acting up, as a result of his old age. Thus temporary command had been given to Asher. At this point he was commanding most of the regiment that was not mounted in Chimeras, plus the armored companies attached from the Malnian armor.

''Tell them the marine recovered fine'' he said.

Corlan fiddled around.

''Well I heard from the Tallarn commander's vox-aid, that the astartes had some sort of refractor field going on.'' Corlan confessed.

''Well obviously he did'' Asher drawled out, pulled out a flash of water. ''But it's better if the tale spreads out of control among the troops, it's a nice propaganda tool really'' he said, taking a sip of the water.

''I don't think the astartes will like that.''

''I don't think the astartes will care'' Asher shot back.

''Well sure with respect I don't think we know how they will take it'' Corlan replied.

''Barrgin does, he was at the Ryza wars eighty years ago'' Asher stated .''You don't get to come to the company commander meetings, but he loves to talk about his old glory days'' he said.

''Those astartes, the Eagle Claws where there, they operated alongside the Guard, killed orks, they repelled the Waaagh of Braktoof and helped evacuate several regiments, this one included'' he recalled.

''Hey Tess! Do you have the banner? Where is the Battle of Frindock's edge?'' he asked, curious. She unveiled the banner quickly, searching through it quickly. Looking through the ornate detailing.

''Here it is, silver edging, it's near the beginning'' she stated. Asher nodded.

''There, it happened, whatever the marines are going now they are too busy for any minor rumors.''

* * *

**Fire Caste Base Camp-55 miles North of Traknor**

Shas'El Vior'la Vash'ka yawned as he finished drying himself, pulling on his combat uniform after finishing with the shower in his air-dropped field headquarters. He blinked his eyes and walked out in the halls. The young Tau commander had only recently passed his latest Trials by Fire, fresh from the battlefields of Gereziad and Canticar, promoted to the command of the Sunknife Cadre, a battlesuit-heavy assault team of XV8's.

One of his shas'vre came up to him. To'las.

''Vash we have some new orders'' he said, he was excited. The Shas'el looked him over, as close friends he was allowed to use his commanders name so causally.

''Well what is it? More Guardsmen?'' he hoped that. When he first arrived at Karovioa as part of the garrison force he had been bored, he felt cheated at fighting on a frontier planet while other conflicts raged.

When the Imperium attacked, whereas the other Tau bemoaned the inevitable carnage that followed, Vash'ka was elated, he wanted to kill, and kill the enemy again. He hoped the enhanced gue'la where among the force. The good news is that they where, the bad news was he had never encountered them. He had only killed Guardsmen in the long bloody months of conflict on Karovioa. There was no changed, nothing that fueled his desire to prove himself.

It was just the same old thing.

Fighting the ork nobs and warbosses, Tyranid warriors, Space Marines, those where the foes that made Vash'ka truly feel alive and worthy of himself. He sought then out on the battlefield.

On Gereziad he had killed several but other than that, he was hard-pressed to find them. When he heard Kir'cea had fought them in the south at Dalu, he had tracked her down and asked her about the conflict. All she had told him that the forces of chaos had somehow gotten in, and she left the marines to deal with the problem, hoping that the two enemies might kill each other, A day after she left, the marines left Dalu and destroyed the place from orbit.

It was a curious thing, the Imperials where fighting to take the planet, then they destroy it? It was something that he could never understand, these strange and foolish gue'la.

''Nice sir, it's the enhanced _gue'la_ marines'' To'las reported with a grin.

Vash'ka felt his excitement rise in his stomach. ''This isn't a joke now is it To'las?'' he asked, afraid that it might be.

''I've heard reports from Ghostfire that the water facility that the gue'la called Traknor-'' he said, having some trouble pronouncing it ''-Was attacked by Imperial marines, we just lost contact with them-''

''Well then we will have to hurry'' Vash'ka said. ''Where is Par'Von? I need him to okay an immediately assault'' he said, grinning, his heart began to beat with excitement.

''The shas'el is calling for an immediate meeting for strategy, he wants to think this through'' To'las said. Vash'ka looked annoyed.

''Well then let's get this over with.''

* * *

**Fire Caste Command Center-60 miles to the North of Traknor**

The room was crowded, with dozens of cadre commanders, _gue'vesa_, shapers and Vespid sting-leaders, The Tau moved to get what chairs they could while the Kroot and Vespid simply stood. Vash'ka and Tos'las entered last.

The building was one of the pre-invasion Tau buildings constructed, originally it was to be a agricultural hall, but now it was refitted as a command center for the Fire Caste. A large circular table dominated the center. Shas'El T'au Par'von stood next to it, waiting for the last of his subordinates to enter the room completely.

''Welcome'' he said. He tapped the bottom on the side of the table, bringing up the tactical situation.

''Doubtless you have already heard about the new development here'' he said. The holo-screen now showing a three-dimensional image of Traknor Primary and then it flipped to Traknor Minoris.

''The two refineries that the _Gue'la _call Traknor has been taken been invaded by the _gue'la_ marines, considering the nature of the attacking force and the fact that we have lost all contact with both of them we must be force to conclude that they are lost to us''

A murmur broke through the crowd. El'Par'von watched them, gauging their reactions.

''We are going to recapture them both.'' He sated.

The murmurs grew louder. Someone raised their hand. El'Par'von quieted them.

''Yes I know it would be better for us to destroy it instead, however we have human allies and a local _gue'la_ population to supply with water in the Traknor desert, destroying it is only the last option''

That quieted many of them down. Some of _the gue'vesa_ looked nervous.

''Now we have recived orders from Shas'O O'res Kais to take it back, but that is not all'' he stated. He hit another button, this showed an image of a massed imperial force in a desert.

''This was taken 2 _decs_ ago, almost a hundred _Tor'kan_ south of here'' he sated.

''As you can see the Imperials are preparing a relief convoy, just like-''

''T'ros'' Shas'El Myo'li said, she was a cousin of Par'von.

The senior Shas'El nodded.

''It looks like that, but we can't be sure, the Shas'el has looked over the plans and says this entire thing might be a faint for the real assault into the Northern Heathers''

''I don't agree'' came another Shas'El, El'Bel'ten. ''I think this is the real thing we should move everything south'' he said.

''The gue'la might have learned from the past battle, they will not drive into a desert again so readily, they are not stupid'' El Myo'li argued back.

''You where never at T'ros, you never saw the-''

''Enough'' El'Par'von said, raising a hand.

''Regardless, we have received orders and we will follow then, the Greater Good demands it, you are like a bunch of orks just now'' he said.

The two immediately quieted down.

''Now don't be so morose, we can still regain the water facilities'' he returned to the briefing.

Vash'ka watched with interest, he hoped desperately to take part in the assault.

''We will move down and secure each of the facilities from the _gue'la_, we must also send a force to stop the convoy'' he stated.

''Unfortunately the war in the north has diverted many resources, he have only six Mantas for use, and if the gue'la employ Titans, we must carefully husband their use'' he reported.

''So in other words, most of the transportation will be by Orca and Devilfish'' he explained.

Vash'ka was bored, as long as he got into combat he did not care how.

''This _gue'la_ column to the south is confirmed of also having _gue'la_ also'' Vash'ka's interested peaked. ''This is a mixed force of normal _gue'la_ and enhanced ones.'' El' Par'von said.

''We will divide the forces into three groups, one will the smaller one, another will take the larger one, and the reminder one will stop the convoy, the first two forces will be the most reinforced.

He began to list off the assignments for each cadre and leader, however when he reached Vash'ka he was interrupted.

''You can't be serious!'' he exclaimed.

Par'von looked a this quizzically. ''What is the matter El'Vash'ka?'' he asked.

''I have been killing the normal _gue'la_ for moths now, we all have, I feel that I would be best suited to fighting the enhanced ones'' he said.

El'Par'von stared at him back. ''You would be more suited to leading the assault on Minoris, you have shown to be an excellent fighter against the nor-'' he began.

''I have proved myself before! I am a Shas'El! I have fought the enhanced ones before'' he shot back. ''On Karovioa! With K'yos-'' he was cut off.

''You have only seen limited action compared to the others in the room, of K'yos was here he would agree with me that the Greater Good would be best served this way'' Par'Von.

'' O'res says that we should all go further in the pursuit of the greater good'' Vash'ka argued.

''Enough'' Par'von snapped.

''This discussion is over with, There is nothing more to be said, you will take your place in the station assigned to you, and protect your fellow Fire Caste members and serve the Greater Good, no more, no less'' he said, his voice growing hard.

Vash'ka was ready to argue more but then bit on his tongue when he noticed that the rest of the room was looking at him with a kind of tense curiosity at the argument between the two.

His face contorted with displeasure as he stepped back. ''Of course, sir, I apologize for stepping out of line, Sunknife cadre will serve the Greater Good with every bit of courage out hearts posses.'' He said.

Par'von nodded, smiling peacefully. ''Alright then, further instructions will be sent to the cadre commanders and their Shas'vre, familiarize yourself with them'' he stated.

''We move within the _Tor'kan_''

* * *

**Traknor Primary**

Chemosian walked through the hallways of the recently repaired main buildings of Traknor primary. His brothers and the Elysians had done a good job when considering the circumstances at hand. A piece of plaster on the floor crunched and he stepped over it as gingerly as his power-armored bulk allowed. Of course, Techmarine Epidemos was not a miracle worker, and neither where the guard unfortunately.

He entered a section of the buildings that served as a temporary field hospital, Apothecary Nerva was administering to some blood samples when Chemosian entered.

''I know where he is'' the librarian said offhandedly. The apothecary went back to his business.

Laying on conference table was Nikarnus, stripped of his armor from waist up. His wounds had been covered with synth-flesh and wrapped in durable flak bandages, the Apothecary had probed his inner organs and injected a healing situation.

''Brother, you have you been'' Chemosian asked.

Nikarnus cracked open one eye. ''I feel better than ever'' he replied in a light tone.

''I don't really appreciate sarcasm Nikarnus'' Chemosian said.

''Didn't the Brother-Chaplain say to embrace despair is to invite defeat? I'm just holding true to the Emperor'' Nikarnus said slyly. Chemosian sighed.

''Somehow I don't think the Chaplain mean that'' said Chemosian dryly.

''Then why are you here then? Is it because you care?'' Nikarnus replied, eyeing the Librarian.

''I do not have a greater attachment to you than the others'' Chemosian began.

''I don't believe that, and neither do you, I don't need to be a psyker to know that'' Nikarnus shifted slightly.

A moment passed between them.

''Nerva said you will probably not need surgery, you are recovering quite nicely'' Chemosian stated.

''Don't talk about me, What I care about this moment-'' he said, shifting back into a more comfortable position. ''-Is my Squad'' he replied.

''The Second? They are in good hands'' Chemosian stated.

''Whose are those hands then? Welis?'' he asked.

''Mine'' the librarian replied.


	4. Beginning of the End

**Author's Notes: Aright, It's finally out, I've had some personal problems but I have mangaged to get this out.**

**Thanks to TheLoneHunter for use of his character Shi'ren and for the invention of Vash'ka for **_**Glory**_**'s use, as well as references to the Battlegrounds series.**

Disclaimer: This is inspired by the Battlegrounds series and is done with the full approval of TheLoneHunter. His locations and refernces are done with his full permission.

**

* * *

**

**Claws's Glory**

**The Beginning of the End**

**

* * *

**

**Gereziad-Two years before**

''I have a question for you, Shas'el'' Vash'ka asked.

El' Shi'ren looked at him, to have Vash'ka meet him like this was so…….. unusual.

The Shas'vre was young, and hot-blooded, it was obvious to anyone with a pair of functioning eyes, that he wanted to prove himself in combat very badly. And prove himself he did. Vash'ka was a talented warrior, but he was too reckless for the older warrior, he had little concept of restraint or mercy, much like the Kroot. In fact it seems sometimes that Vash'ka went and sought death wherever he could possibly find it.

''Yes Shas'vre? What do you want?'' he said calmly.

''It's about K'yos'' Vash'ka asked.

''What about the Shas'O?'' Shi'ren replied.

''Why does he use blades? I heard he got the technology from the _gue'la_'' he said.

''Don't you use it yourself?'' Shi'ren referred to Vash'ka own retractable khopesh that he modified his suit with, a common practice among some of the Shas'vre, K'yos was quite inspirational.

''It's a new thing, I feel strange using it'' he admitted.

''A bad thing?'' Shi'ren said.

''No, I never really fought like that'' Vash'ka explained. ''After I saw K'yos fight and kill that _gue'la_ officer, I wondering why he uses blades? I'm not complaining'' he added hastily.

''K'yos……… is different'' Shi'ren said. ''He very adaptable and posses a kind of certain……. genius, I can't find the right words for it really'' he said.

''What exactly do you mean?''

''The closest I can describe, K'yos is one of those rare beings who are born once a generation, such beings are natural leaders, and seem to go beyond what others expect of him'' Shi'ren explain.

''Like O'Shovah?'' Vash'ka said.

Shi'ren turned upon him, eyes angry. ''Do not speak that name so casually young one! You have no idea of what he was like at all'' he said, his voice surprisingly fierce. Vash'ka was taken aback.

''I apologize Shas'el'' Vash'ka said hastily, now wanting to antagonize the senior Fire Warrior. ''But he won against the _gue'la_ in hand to hand combat, why do you insist that we do not do that?''

''Because, the method carries a certain amount of risk, the more traditional method of combat preserves lives'' Shi'ren said. ''While I respect K'yos and would follow him to the death, his methods produce more casualties than I am entirely comfortable with'' he stated.

''Look at Aestara City, a victory of course, but at such cost'' Shi'ren said.

''We must be prepared to lay down our lives for the Tau'va'' Vash'ka quoted.

''Of course, but we do not need to lay down out lives in such a brutish matter as the _gue'la_ do, our race should have left such things as clubs and spears long ago, in the Mon'tau'' the elder Shas'el lectured.

''But we are encountering races out there, who can and do employ such close quarter methods to great effect'' Vash'ka shot back.

''Then we adapt'' Shi'ren said simply.

''Would not adoption of the _gue'la_ not count as an adaptation?'' he stated.

''Why would we need the technology from the _gue'la_? We have done well so far, it pains me to think we need to steal from such a barbaric race? The kroot may be free to use the technology, but I don't see why we need to use it''. He explained.

''I see'' Vash'ka said slowly. ''Your _opinions_ are most illuminating.'' He left quickly.

Shi'ren did not notice the emphasis on ''opinions''.

* * *

**Traknor Desert- Six Miles from the Refineries**

Dozens of Orcas and countless Devilfish, Sky Rays, Hammerheads, and Tetras, moved over the sun-baked sands. Behind them came the great horde of kroot, kicking up a vast could of dust. Over them the sun set in the distance. Six Mantas came over the skies, escorted by several Barracuda fighters, the Tau had trouble maintaining air superiority on Karovioa's skies with Healy's extreme caution, and tendency to make his airfields some of the most heavily fortified places on the planets.

The two great refineries stood tall in the distance, twin great bastions, the Minoris was located closer to the Tau at Karovioa Primaris, now Kar'vo'Tan, while Traknor Primary was located five miles further southwest in rock-heavy terrain.

Flocks of Tetras scouted over the rocks, skimming gracefully, ignoring the great tan rocks and depression in the hot sandy desert that stretched as far as the eye could possibly see into the horizon. They came in cautiously, moving in to gauge the range of the Imperial guns. Several of them tracking and plotting the positions of the Imperials, and the arc of the temporary heavy weapons brought up

Rockets streaked from the positions of the two refineries at the Tetras, who banked hard and turned around, heading back to their own lines at full possible speed. It was almost enough. Several solid-fuel rockets caught and obliterated one Tetra, while another clipped a scout skimmer and sent it careening into the ground, the metal ripping apart as the mass hit the ground at great speeds.

The rest came back safely.

* * *

**Traknor Minoris**

The Mantas circled overhead, multiple heavy weapons and missile banks sending a wave of death into the entrenched Elysian troopers below in the buildings of Traknor Minoris. Three great refineries stood in the courtyard, alongside with several minor buildings, the area below was covered with hastily constructed barricades and trenches.

El'Vash'ka's Crisis suit stood in the landing bay of the Manta, the seven other battlesuits and the four Devilfish transports, each with a full squad of Shas inside, fully armored and armed.

''Prepare for launch'' the online drone system in the hanger said, as lights blinked from the ceilings, the local launch bay drones buzzed around and retreated to their charging alcoves. Information ran across his suit monitors, informing him of his readiness.

''This is it'' Vash'ka spoke into the local intercom of the Sunknife Cadre. He was still bitter about being forced to kill yet more of the common _gue'la_ while there where still worthier opponents to be fought.

Two Mantas, laden with a pair of hunter cadres, would launch on attack on the Minoris, behind them where almost fifty Devilfish skimmers, six orcas escorted by a Barracuda flight, and over thirty Hammerhead gunships and Sky Ray missile ships. Flocks of Tetras moved like shoals of fish before them, clearing a path. The Tau's own tanks began a bombardment, railguns, ion cannons and racks of missiles where unloaded into the great bastion walls of the Minoris.

Great chunks of masonry where blasted from the walls, killing dozens of Elysians, the falling debris fell on many of the hiding Guardsmen, causing yet more deaths. The Mantas moved in, as the fleet of Devilfish banked over a low rise and sped towards the shattered and ruined walls. Missiles and las-beams from heavy weapons on the ground blasted chunks of metal and circuitry from the Mantas, but it was useless against the flyer's thick armor.

The Guard commander, Major Whitefield, realizing the real threat was approaching over the wall, frantically issued orders for the heavy weapons to be turned on the Devilfish instead. The Elysians obeyed, switching targets even under the punishing hail of fire from the Mantas and Barracudas. Dozens of missiles, las-beams from heavy cannon and hundreds of heavy bolter rounds blasted apart nine Devilfish.

The burning hulks crashed to the ground, but more where coming in, a lot more, under the cover of the bombardment from the Hammerheads and Sky Rays who blasted apart the Guard fortifications.

A flight of Devilfish moved in front of the Orcas , while overhead the Barracudas opened fire, clearing out the landing zones for the drop ships and the troop carriers. The Devilfish flew over the wall and opened fire with burst cannons, sending hundreds of pulse rounds into the guard fortification blowing apart dozens of heavily fortified guardsmen.

The ramps lowered and Fire Warriors rappelled out. Seeing the infantry finally come out the survivors opened fire with everything they had.

Entire Fire warriors teams where blasted apart, while others, sheltered in the rear escaped. Regardless those who landed immediately returned fire, gunning down Guardsmen in revenge.

As a storm of las-fire and pulse rounds whipped down in the ground, as the Mantas readied themselves, Barracudas came down in an attack run, dropping the rest of their munitions into the helpless Elysians marked out by the Fire warriors on the ground. The doors opened and Vash'ka grinned savagely. ''Insertion in five _dec'taa_'' the online drone systems voice came again and the docking clamps on his suit released it's hold on his crisis suit as he and the others prepared to launch.

''There are too many here, El'Vash'ka'' came the voice of Myo'li over his suit comm. ''We cannot land safely, let the Devilfish cadres of Stormknife, Skyblade and Blackout secure the area-''

''Then won't have to'' Vash'ka said with amusement. He checked his weapons again. ''They are going to die down there. Every single last one of them'' he emphasized the last words.

He leapt.

Three Crisis suit squadrons followed him, as he leapt out of the Manta bay and gunned his thrusters, behind them where four Devilfish, laden with the rest of his Fire Warrior cadre. He landed in the middle of a Guard squad, crushing two men under the feet of his suit. He opened fire with the burst cannon and flamer attachments, laughing as they blew apart the stunned Guard.

A nearby officer pointed a chainsword at him and shouted orders. Vash'ka moved with starting speed and lashed out with the leg of his XV8, pulping his upper body with a single move. ''Ko'vash Tau'va!'' he cried as he did so.'' He then turned around and opened fire with his flamer, incinerating the panicking gun crew he was giving orders to in a torrent of fire. Las-rounds pinged off his armor and he continued laughing.

Up ahead he could see the shapes of Elysians moving in and out of the main refinery station. He leapt over, gunning his jet pack, weapons blazing, gunning down more guardsmen as they fire at him.

''Come in Sunknife! The weather's fine!'' he chuckled, taking out the nearest Guardsmen with lethal precision and power.

The rest of his crisis suits landed behind him, spreading out to clear the landing zone for the Fire Warriors, who moved up slowly, firing their pulse rifles and teams with carbines moved out, providing covering fire for their comrades. A Las-round hit a Crisis suit in the knee, the battlesuit turned and fired a burst from it's arm cannon at the offending Guardsmen. Then a krak missile came from behind and blew it to pieces.

Through sheer luck, a frag missile from an Elysian emplacement hit a Devilfish, just as it opened it' s ramp, blowing part all of the Fire Warriors in an instant and annihilating the innards of the assault carrier, sending it crashing to the ground. Another Devilfish was hit in the grave-plate by a grenade and hung there, shot over and over again by lascannon rounds and autocannons, blowing it apart.

Crisis suits came in, flying, weapons blowing apart Guardsmen with ease. Autocannon rounds blew apart three crisis suits and a krak missile narrowly missed Shas'el Myo'li as she outflanked a guard platoon.

A pair of las-rounds arced into the throat of a Fire Warrior, blowing apart the neck and upper chest of the warrior. Enraged, his squad Shas'ui, aimed the markerlight at the offending squad and pressed the button. A nearby crisis suit blew them to shreds with a burst cannon.

''Is that enough for you Myo'li?'' Vash'ka opened a channel to her. ''You looked like you had a close shave back there'' he taunted. She ignored him.

Other squads where moving up to continue the main thrust of the attack. Above the Mantas came in for another attack run, rail guns, ion cannons burst cannons and missiles spelling death for the Guard below, annihilating them.

Then the Tau halted their attack.

Groups of Fire Warriors, found cover in the various great fallen chucks of stone masonry and former Elysian earthworks, returning fire, marking out gunnery and command positions, that where targeted by fast roving groups of Crisis suits and Piranhas. The Guard commanders where confused, as they and they shattered troops regrouped desperately in the hastily fortified hallways of Minoris's three great refinery complexes, leaving behind the rest of their defenses.

''What are they doing?'' Major Whitefield asked, ducking his head as a pulse round whistled overhead. Toby, his vox-man looked up.

''I-I don't know sir'' he said breathlessly. ''Haws and Michealson are dead, we've lost the Seventh, Ninth and Tenth already!'' he said in a fearful tone.

Whitefield slapped him. ''You are a drop trooper of Elysia! If Mishka was here she would shoot you!'' he explained. ''If Loric was here you would be wishing you where dead'' he snarled.

A shout came from an Elysian lieutenant near Whitefield, who narrowed his blue eyes through a thin hole in the compound wall created by a stray pulse rifle round. His eyes widened.

A deep screeching came, as hundreds of kroot warriors came leaping over the wreckage of Minoris's walls, coming in through the gaps and going through the ranks of their Tau brethren, who ceased fire, allowing the kroot to pass. They, and their leader, Borchak, came, in a swift, tidal wave of death. Whitefield screamed and swore, ordering everything to be launched, no exceptions at all

A storm of las-rounds autocannon rounds, heavy stubbers and frag missiles devastated the front ranks of the kroot, blowing apart dozens upon dozens of the bird-like aliens as they continued on.

''Let's create an opening'' Vash'ka said, as he opened a channel. ''Ko'vash Tau'va!'' he proclaimed, blasting off with startling speed, for such a machine as large as an XV8, his Shas'vre followed behind.

Other Crisis suits followed, until their where over twenty from various cadres. Missiles and a storm of las-rounds blew apart five suits, but they where undeterred. Vash'ka ordered them on. Form the rear Broadside suits sighted a section of the wall marked out by Vash'ka, and opened fire, the great rail slugs ripping through the ancient rockcrete and steel of the primary refinery building of Minoris like paper.

''In now!'' Vash'ka commanded. A Crisis suit landed with an earth shaking thud in the opening, only to be blown apart by dozens of lasguns firing at once. The same fate followed the second crisis suit. The forms of Elysians where emerging from the rubble.

Vash'ka cursed in Tau, and opened fire with his reserves missiles, sending them into the gap. A pair of faint explosions sounded out, and then far more audible human screams.

Then, as he landed, a storm of las-fire and autocannon rounds that clipped and battered his Crisis suit, the kroot came like an ocean around him, leaping and launching themselves forward with powerful inhuman muscles. They came into the broken walls of the refinery complexes, bounding forward, crashing into the groups of terrified Guardsmen, spinning their rifles like bladed clubs, bashing in brains and removing limbs with ease.

A pack of kroot hounds rounded the corner of a building, their masters bounding behind, butchering Guardsmen who fought back with rifle butts, knives and shovels against the kroot.

A XV8 blasted a hole in the wall with a plasma rifle, allowing the kroot hounds straight into Major Whitefield's command post. The Major cursed and withdrew his chainsword as las rounds blew three of the hounds apart. A hound leapt onto the screaming Toby and tore his throat out with a single bound.

One leapt after Major Whitefield, the major ducked over it's lunge and bought his chainsword up, disemboweling it, another came bounding to Whitefield's side, the Major brought his chainsword down, decapitating it right before it got him. A white-hot-pain came from his right arm as a Kroot hound's powerful jaws came upon it, tearing muscle and exposing white bone to the air. Whitefield screamed and brought the butt of his chainblade down, crushing the hound's skull.

The Crisis suit from earlier lumbered in, it's plasma rifle blowing away the few survivors of the guard command squad. Whitefield realized he was alone suddenly, the remaining kroot hounds where now bounding off in search of more prey.

''Surrender _gue'la_'' the voice that came form the suit was female, to his faint surprise. ''Surrender now, and we will stop the kroot'' she said Whitefield just stared at her.

How dare she, this alien bitch and her dammed hounds where eating his men, he could hear their screams now. He switched his chainsword to his other hand and leapt screaming at Myo'li.

The Plasma rifle swung up and blew apart the charging Major into ash before the blade connected.

''Foolish _gue'la_''

* * *

**3 Miles outside Traknor Minoris**

Shas'El Par'von stood in the middle of the desert in his command XV8, watching the streams of combat data that where fed directly into his specially modified command sensors.

''The Minoris refinery is most neutralized'' Myo'li reported over the comm. ''Most of the _gue'la_ are either dead or have surrendered, it will be a simple task to clear out the remainder of the Minoris'' she stated.

Another voice buzzed in.

''El'Par'von'' It was Vash'ka.

''I am finished here, we have won a complete victory'' he said. ''I want to move Sunknife in right now, I need the Mantas to be brought around for me to board'' he demanded.

''That is a negative El'Vash'ka'' Par'von said.

''What?'' Vash'ka was incredulous. ''Did I hear you correctly?''

''Yes you did'' the senior Shas'el replied. ''Myo'li'' he commanded. ''How many casualties did we take?'' he asked.

''Although the ground lies thick with humans it lies thick with the Shas'la and the Kroot,'' she reported.

''In this case, it would be unwise to throw a bloodied unit directly unto action, especially when I am already moving up my remaining reserve cadres for the assault on the Primary facility'' Par'von stated.

''This is-'' Vash'ka began.

''-Your orders'' Par'von interrupted. ''Thank you for your services, that will be all''

He shut off the connection to them both, and then sent out orders to the Hammerheads and Sky Rays to move up to support his remaining reserves.

The earlier Mantas where returning to the Tau airfield to be repaired and rearmed. Par'von had little Mantas available to use against a potential counter thrust. Therefore he had to make use of them as ready as possible. Three more Mantas, along with five Orcas and almost thirty Devilfish would attack the Primaris with the support of the Hammerhead and Sky ray cadres. Once that was accomplished then they would deal with the _gue'la_ relief column.

Ko'vash Tau'va.

* * *

**Traknor Primary**

''What did you get from the Minoris?'' Kommneus asked.

''Death, pain, terror and anger from them all'' Chemosian reported. The Imperials at Traknor Primary had Chemosian monitor the soul-feelings and moods of the troops at Minoris.

They had been unable to contact the Minoris conventionally. The Tau had done something that messed up anything beyond short-range communications. However they where able to get around this because of Chemosian.

''I see'' Loric trailed off. Kommneus could not read his mood. He could be indifferent or sad for all he knew.

''I spotted the forms of the Tau Mantas, I don't believe that we have anything that can hurt them effectively here, now do we?'' The fifth captain said.

''You are correct'' answered Loric. The Guard and the Marines where in a room in the primary refinery that was used as an office space, Kommneus's had his senior sergeants with him and Loric had several of his officers with him.

''Johnson?'' he asked one of his captains.

''Nothing beyond lascannons or autocannons, and our Sentinels, sir'' he reported, his face neutral.

''We have Whirlwinds, the Honored Ancients, a trio of Predators, and three of our Whirlwinds are the Hyperios model.'' Kommneus said.

''We also have access to the base's anti-air defenses'' reported Techmarine Galba. ''Brother Epidemos and I have finished bringing them into operation, but they will only be effective against the smaller Tau transport carriers'' he stated.

''Then we are in a bit of a bind'' Loric stated.

''There may be a way'' Chemosian said. ''I may be able to contact Healy's psykers and our ships in orbit. I can urge them to send anything that can fly and shoot here as soon as possible''

''The Lightning's and Thunderbolts are busy across the planet'' Loric stated. ''Only a few will be able to respond''

''Then we will get out Thunderhawks'' Kommneus said. ''And what about your Valkyries and Vendettas?'' he asked.

''Calling them in now will mean they have no time to ready the troops for transportation'' the Colonel said.

''If they don't come then the troops will have no position to reinforce them'' Kommneus declared. He turned to the librarian.

''Send it''

* * *

**Traknor Primary**

It was nightfall

The Tau came in the same manner as they did earlier, under the fire of the Hammerheads and missiles from the Sky Rays, came the Devilfish, flanked by Piranhas. Overhead soared three Mantas and five Orcas, escorted by a Barracuda flight. The Tau Mantas came in from the air, quickly followed by their charges, missiles and lascannon rounds stabbed up briefly. But then it soon ceased, as Healy ordered the weapons to be turned upon the approaching Devilfish wave.

The rail cannons of the Hammerheads and the missiles of the Sky Rays blasted Traknor, but the Primary was older and larger than the Minoris, with a much sturdier construction as a result. Instead of the countless smaller holes that the barrage upon the Minoris created, only two large holes where made instead. The cadre commanders checked their headings and jinked to come in.

Chemosian and Belsarius stood within the main access hallway of the Primaris, ducking as a piece of masonry flew by.

''Did you do what the Captain ordered?'' Chemosian asked him.

''Yes, I send up trip wires and booby trapped the most likely sites where the Tau would drop in, I also scattered mines outside the fortress in case of an attack'' he reported.

Chemosian nodded. ''Well then let's get into position, It's almost time'' he said.

From what Chemosian learned of the Tau's assault on the Minoris, were the fleeting last images of the dead Guardsmen he had advised the Colonel and the Captain how to best defend against the Tau assault. He came into a series of low dugouts where the Elysians where dug in with heavy weapons, Squads Welis and Parnus where with him. They moved under the rockcrete roof.

The Mantas where now settling down, the doors opened as the Barracudas swooped away after their last attack run. Across the courtyard, lie dozens and dozens of dead Elysians.

The forms of battlesuits came down from the Mantas, as the Devilfish flew over the walls and junked down abruptly, black lines spinning out from the sides as hatches opened and Fire Warriors moved out. Over two hundred Shas and 24 Crisis suits where coming in. As a XV8 hit the ground, it was blown apart by a proximity mine set up by Belsarius. Other Fire Warriors who came down under covering fire from the Devilfish, where blown apart by frag grenades.

The Devastator squads of Elgabalus and Talken opened fire, lascannons, heavy bolters and missile launchers, blowing three of the Devilfish into scrap along with their occupants. From the rear the marine Whirlwinds firing off multiple rockets into the Devilfish and Fire Warriors, destroying four more transports, and wreaking havoc amount the Tau.

A Crisis suit landed in front of Chemosian and Parnus, firing it's plasma rifle, killing a single marine. The librarian lashed out with a wave of green fire, incinerating it into ash.

Another Crisis suit came, fusion blaster raised. But Chemosian was too quick, and ducked the aim and drove his force sword straight into the cockpit, cutting the armor like paper and gutting the pilot. He withdrew the sword as Squad Parnus destroyed the last one with massed bolter fire, Calkus blasting apart the shield drones, and Gilwe's heavy bolter blazing into the nearby fire warriors.

Nearby Squad Welis and an Elysian Platoon traded fire with the Fire Warriors. A Devilfish landed nearby, out of control after being hit by a missile early on. With two quick strides Welis was on it. With a quick tug of his power fist he ripped open the hatch, and tossed in a pair of frag grenades into the troop bay, right in the faces of the scrambling Fire Warriors. The marine leapt away as the Tau where fragged.

Accurate pulse fire killed two more marine's one from Welis's remnants, and another from Parnus. Another marine went down from a knee shot, alongside with over a dozen Elysians.

A Predator came up, firing it's main weaponry, blowing apart a several Fire Warriors from it's heavy bolters, as Squad Welis retreated behind it, firing as they went.

An Elysian officer directed the fire from two teams of heavy bolters, cutting down dozens of Fire Warriors along with a nearby platoon that spread out, and opened fire. Pulse rifle answered him. A Markerlight lit up the officer's position and a pair of XV8's with burst cannons, opened fire at the position, annihilating the heavy bolter operators even as they brought them about in response.

Their victory was short lived, as torrent of green warpfire engulfed the two war machines, bringing them into blackened lumps of metal on the ground.

Four XV8 squadrons came forward, gunning their engines as las-rounds bounced off their armor plate. One of the groups jinked forward to the right, while the three others went to the left, amongst the Guardsmen of the Elysian 3rd company.

Squad Phocas was first to respond, they where behind a thick concrete wall, trading shots with the landing fire warriors, when the XV8's came in, hard and fast, weapons spitting. Plasma shots blew apart two marines, burst cannon rounds slew a third, and blew off the hand of another marine. Sergeant Phocas rolled under the aim of a plasma rifle and cut out the legs of the Crisis suit as it attempt to jump away.

Phocas ignored the fallen suit, and then ducked a hastily conducted blow from the Crisis suit and thrust his sword forward, cutting away a piece of armor from the side of the suit as it swerved around. Then a plasma shot took the suit in the chest, blowing out it's back while Phocas's squad blew apart the last suit with repeated bolter fire. A fusion blaster was raised at Phocas's back when one of his squad brothers shouted a warning.

The sergeant swung his blade around and removed the offending limb, before he reversed his grip and plunged it into the cockpit to the fallen Crisis suit with a single swift blow.

The other three teams dodged return las-fire from the Guardsmen, and landed among them, burst cannons and plasma rifles spitting death as they moved with surprising speed and grace for such large machines. They burst in through the freshly repaired hallway wall and came in. An Elysian captain screamed orders for the heavy weapons to be brought up before he was decapitated by a plasma round. A meltagun team reduced a Crisis suit to ash with a single shot. They whooped before they where slain by its vengeful squad mates.

Las-round plinked drones out of the air, more las-rounds blew off the sensor mounts of a Crisis suit and the left weapon mount, causing it to careen and moved wildly, it's right flamer mount sending death indiscriminately. The Crisis suit was finally put out its confusion as a volley of bolter rounds from Squad Yonaz. Behind them was Kommneus and his command squad. With a ground eating stride the captain moved forward, pulling out both weapons as he did so.

He fires his storm bolter at the nearest one, blowing chunks of armor and circuitry form it, causing it to retreat back from him. Then the suit ran into the retreating forms of several Guardsmen, causing it to bowl over. Kommneus seized the chance, he went in and brought his power sword under the armpit joint of the suit, and brought it across the chest of the suit, cutting it in half and killing the pilot.

Yonaz's melta blew apart another XV8 as Kommneus's veteran command squad moved in, storm bolters and power swords are ready, engaging the last four Crisis suits. Power swords carved part two more of the XV8's with consummate skill and grace, born from hundreds of battles. A fusion blaster reduced another marine to his component atoms and a plasma shot narrowly took another's head off.

The last Crisis suits gunned their engines and blasted back from the marines, back outside, through the wall. Yonaz came up behind, bolters spitting, blowing chunks out of the retreating suits as they went away.

Kommneus's enhanced hearing picked up the familiar sounds of the Mantas coming around.

''Get to Chemosian and Phocas! Tell them to move back.'' Kommneus instructed, as Yonaz saluted and commanded his squad to follow. The captain turned away and cast a critical eye over the great devastation of the hallway, filled with countless dead and dying guardsmen and a few plucky survivors. The great assault craft flew over the Primary as the Marines and Guard frantically sought cover from the multiple rail cannons, burst cannons and ion cannons. A hailstorm of firepower lanced down.

Three marines from Elgabalus's Devastators where slain, two more marines from Assault Squad Nero was also killed, alongside over fifty more Guardsmen by the initial attack.

The Manta swooped away, as two more came in, ignoring the multiple weapons and rockets fired at it. The Whirlwind Hyperios had more success, downing two Barracuda fighters and blowing several weapon mounts on the Mantas.

Across the field Fire Warriors moved up in teams, a pair of Orcas bringing in more troops, and several more Devilfish behind them. The remaining Mantas came over, weapons fire blowing apart two whirlwinds and the Predators, however this time all of the marines and the dreadnoughts, had safely retreated inside the great rockrete fortifications.

Kommneus peered through a broken window and cursed. There was nothing he could do, except pray the remaining Hyperios got lucky and downed a Manta. Then he heard another familiar sound.

A quartet of Thunderhawks came from the skies, along with several squadrons of Lightning's and Thunderbolts, immediately they swooped down into attack position, two squadrons peeling off to deal with the Barracudas.

Kommneus was reminded of a scene when he was a child on Asclepieion. When he was out hunting, he spotted a great desert Gargantuan, a large bear-like predator fighting a dozens of smaller qegoths. Although the smaller scorpion beasts where individually weaker and slower than the great Gargantuan, they swarmed around him, moving in and out, weakening the great beast with each blow, before retreating and coming back again.

Kommneus watched as the dozens of smaller fighters swarmed the Mantas, the Thunderhawks leading them, although they tore a dozen great rents in the largest Mantas bodies, they could not destroy it. Instead the Mantas retreated, along with the retreating Barracudas, unable to remain in the air for long, while attacked by a swarm of Imperial gunships, fighters and ground fire from the survivors.

Kommneus could feel the tide turning. _I see_, he thought. _Healy did bring a lot into this, I guess this holds a greater importance than I thought_, he pondered. Several Marauder bombers came over the Minoris.

They swooped down, blowing apart Devilfish and Piranhas with equal abandon, trashing the outer walls where kindreds of Kroot where beginning to arrive. Anarchy spread everywhere. Missiles from the Sky Rays caused them to pull up. A single Marauder fell to the ground, and exploded in a great ball of fire, while the others sought a higher altitude.

He activated his squad comm. ''The Tau's aircraft have retreated, this is our chance! Drive them back and avenge the dead! Now!'' he commanded.

''Yonaz, Phocas, Parnus, Welis move up into firing positions, Elgabalus, Talken, target the Crisis suits! Sulla! Severus! Enter now!'' he commanded. Rapidly the marines obeyed his commands.

The Tactical and devastator squads entered the fortification that they had so recently vacated, and returned fire against the advancing Fire Warriors and Devilfish, blowing apart the lead warriors, even as pulse rifles stirred into action. The remaining guardsmen, led by Captain Gorland, took heart of the arrival of the Navy fighters and the marines gunships, and moved forward, bringing up heavy weapons, meltaguns and flamers, while sending disciplined volleys of las-fire.

The Tau, now so readily advancing under the cover of the Mantas where now thrown into a loop, caught into the open by heavy firepower they fell back, firing as they went while the Crisis suits moved around to the flanks.

The Vanguard Veterans of Sulla, leapt into the air, flying on wings of Fire. Their sergeant targeted an Orca, not defenseless, separated from it's Barracuda escort, and plunged towards it. The bay was already beginning to open, with over forty Fire Warriors readying themselves. A Tau warrior screamed with shock, as the hoary veteran sergeant landed on the landing pad and crushed his skull with his relic power hammer.

The rest of the Vanguard arrived, grappling into the sides and heading into the transport bay of the Orca, chainblades and power swords readied. ''Pure Hearts! Pure Souls, Pure Blades!'' Sulla cried out. With each swing of his thunder hammer he slew two of three Tau, the rest of the Eagle Claws entered the swing hover carrier. In the packed confines of the Orca, the Tau where hopelessly outmatched by the elite assault marines.

Sulla picked up a melta bomb from his belt and attached it to the wall of the Orca transport, even as the thing swerved and buckled in the air, as the Air Caste pilot tried to regain control. The Vanguard marines leapt from the hatches, gunning their jump packs as the melta bomb went off, annihilating the innards of the Orca and sending it crashing don into the wall.

Sulla landed in the middle of a Fire Warriors squad, crushing a Shas under his great power armored boots. He brought the Thunder hammer down and killed another Fire warrior as the rest of his squad landed, knocking down Fire Warriors. The elite Vanguard moved out, killing and slaughtering over a two dozen Shas in ten seconds, the legendary combat prowess of the chapter elite carving up the main Tau battleline.

From the air came Squad Severus, using the covering fire provided by the Tacticals and Devastators to close in with the Fire Warriors, sending gouts of flame form their flamers.

A pair of pulse rounds decapitated a Vanguard marine. His battle brother snarled and fired his bolt pistol at the offending Fire Warrior, blowing him apart, another pulse round clipped his armor as the Vanguard marine fired his jump pack and moved in, kicking a fire warrior in the chest, crushing his vital organs with the sheer superhuman force of the blow, and beheading another Tau.

The marines of Severus landed, flamers and bolt pistols blazing, the Tau already desperately reacting to the jump-pack equipped marines, downing two before they reached the Fire Warriors.

But it was not enough.

''Sergeant! There is a nearby squadron of Broadsides providing covering fire, silence them.'' Kommneus's voice came on.

''Yes Sir'' Sulla replied, blasting off.

Kommneus frowned as he ducked behind a fallen pillar, another transmission was coming in from Elgabalus.

''My lord'' the marine said breathlessly. ''The Tau have slipped in again, this one with leader markings!'' he reported.

''I'll take care of it.

* * *

**Traknor Primary-Beta Refinery**

The walls of the Beta refinery blew apart, the forms of three Crisis suits emerging, with El'Ben'ten in the lead. The XV8 was armed with a plasma rifle and a fusion gun.

Captain Gorland, the Elysian officer assigned to lead the 3rd company next to Kommneus's defenses, looked up in shock, he had been using this place as a command headquarters to direct his mauled company. He grabbed his hellpistol, knocking aside several papers on the main desk, as his Guardsmen grabbed their weapons.

It was too late, controlled, accurate fire from the Tau suits blew him and his command platoon apart. Even before their bodies hit the floor dozens of more guardsmen arrived in the room. Las-fire blew small chunks of armor and plating from the suits. Only caught off guard for a moment, El'Ben'ten and his bodyguards moved in, weapons blazing, cutting down Elysian after Elysian.

''Finish them and move on'' Ben'ten instructed, as a Guardsman ran up with a plasma gun and fired a shot, which dissipated against his personal shields. He extended his arm blade and dissipated the guardsman easily.

A plasma round caught one of his bodyguards and blew the Shas'vre to shreds. Ben'ten swung around to see a marine captain and several others arrive alongside a dozen more guardsmen.

''Retreat'' Ben'ten commanded.

Before he could do that, a hail of bolter fire came his way, most of them where blocked by his shields, until a pair of rounds from the Guard blew apart his drones, causing the shields to fall. A Marine raised a meltagun at him, and began to pull the trigger when Ben'ten killed him with a shot from his own fusion blaster. But Kommneus had closed, his power sword slicing off the fusion arm.

Ben'ten brought his arm blade around and clashed it with Kommneus's own sword, sparks grinded between the power fields as Kommneus disengaged and gouged a large tear in the chest of the Shas'el. Ben'ten snarled and kicked him back, firing his plasma rifle at the falling captain. However instead of dying like he predicted, the Iron Halo around his head merely flashed and absorbed the shot.

Kommneus quickly got up and locked blades with the one armed commander, trying to force him back with all his strength, warning symbols flashed across his helmet screens, warning him that this power armor was at half capacity from damage. The Shas'el tried another side kick, but the captain avoided it as the Shas'el began to swivel its shoulder mounts at him. Then the large war machine collapsed, as Marius tugged his lightning claw out from the back of the suit, where he thrust it straight into the cockpit.

''It looked like you needed help'' he said absent-mindedly. The other suit blasted off and escaped as shots trialed after it.

Kommneus got up and panted. ''One arm? Don't joke like that Marius, it does not become you''

They left.

* * *

**Traknor Primary**

The cost had been heavy.

To the breach in the North wall, the 5th under Kommneus fought off the Tau attackers. The Tau assault had disintegrated into a brutal-short ranged firefight after they had lost their air support. The Eagle Claws and the Elysians pushed them back, driving them away from the walls, pushing back their foe. The carcasses of two Orcas, and two dozen Devilfish lay on the ground, alongside a courtyard packed with hundreds of dead Guardsmen and Tau.

Nine battle brothers died, nine heroes that the 5th could sorely afford to lose. Three times that number where wounded in various degrees. Apothecary Nerva, after he had retrieved the geneseed from the honored dead, went to work on severed limbs and gut wounds. It was due to Nerva's skills, and excellence as an Apothecary, in one of the chapters who specialized in genetic science and healing, that not a single marine died from any of their severe wounds.

On the East wall, Loric led his men with courage and steel, throwing back the Tau assault and claiming two battlesuit kills himself thanks to his power fist and plasma pistol. He fought off Kroot assault kindreds, while directing heavy weapons to blast away enemy troops and tanks.

Despite heavy casualties the Elysians remained, Commissar Mishka shooting any who abandoned their posts, shouting a prayer from the Codicum Imperalis as she did so.

After the initial air support had been chased away and the Fire Warrior assault blunted. The Tau sent in kroot to clear out the entrenched Elysians, charging through the dig in batteries the earthworks to fight. It was close, bloody and brutal , with no mercy, rifle butts and knives where used, along with eye-gouging and crippling joint blows in the bloody close combat. In the end Loric himself led the 1st company in, driving back the aliens, otherwise his entire line would be broken.

After the Kroot where beaten back the Tau withdrew, although in a far more orderly fashion than their brethren at the North wall.

Over a third of the Elysians had been killed or wounded. Loric had the wounded dragged back into the inner refineries and cared for in the crowded conditions. Originally the bodies of the Elysian dead where to be thrown into the inner refines, but there was no room. To his disgust, Colonel Loric was persuaded by Commissar Mishka to pile the bodies at the breaches, along with the bodies of the dead in an old Vahallan practice.

Gruesome as the may be it proved to be an effective barricade.

That did not stop the Eagle Claws from burning the bodies they got their hands on, or flat out refusing her request to use the bodies of their dead. Kommneus told her that the next time she asked that he could kill her on the spot for the insult.

The Tau casualties where much larger. Half the force that attacked the Primary was dead or wounded, with most of them left behind to be killed in the aftermath of the battle by the Imperials. Two-thirds of the kroot kindreds that attacked the Primary where also gone. Shaper Gorcuk was moving up to reabsorbed the remnants in preparation for the next assault.

As the night's moon rose all sides pulled back, waiting for tomorrow.


	5. Sands of Death

**Author's Notes: Here is Chapter 5, where are about just over midway throught the story.**

Disclaimer: This is inspired by the Battlegrounds series and is done with the full approval of TheLoneHunter. His locations and refernces are done with his full permission.

* * *

**Claws's Glory**

**Sands of Death**

* * *

**Majornus Prime-forty-seven years ago**

The marines of the Second walked though the knife-like leaves of the thick jungle, great Purple and grey forms, spreading out, weapons at ready, auto-senses piercing the thick gloom of the jungle leaves.

Before the spread-out tactical squads, were the Scouts of the 10th, who blended in flawlessly with their camo-cloaks. At the center of the hunting formation was Brother Captain Juilan Basiclus. It was been almost thirty years since the day when he went from being the commander of the 6th reserve Company, to the commander of the Second, his old unit, after the previous captain had fallen fighting the chaos marines of the Iron Warriors, and the Night Lords.

He had taken up the power sword of Solomon Herito, the ancient relic blade dating back to the Great Crusade, and slew the twisted chaos champion, who had fallen upon Captain Apostelus. After that, Marcus Garuda, the Chapter Master of the Eagle Claws, declared he was to be the new commander of the Second Company, after the rites of command where performed on the ''Sword of the Emperor''

Since then he had struck far, winning many glorious victories, the victory over the orks at Calderon, the suppressing of the Tranar IX rebellion, the rescue of the Mechanicus archeotech of Semto. All won by him.

And now he was on Majornus.

Majornus was a mining world, covered in great sprawling jungles, filled with dangerous plantlife, like the deathworld Catachan, and Basiclus's own homeworld of Asclepieion. The people who populated it where a rugged, hardy race of miners, who mined the deep minerals and rocks beneath the earth, that where used in the construction of buildings and weapons across the sector.

The Eagle Claws had received a plea for help from the Planetary governor. The twisted piratical Dark Eldar kabals had struck at the planet, enslaving and butchering many settlements. The Eagle Claws Second Company under Basiclus had dropped in while a slave raid was taking place, defeating the Raiders and slaughtering them, while administering the Emperor's peace to the broken victims of the witch-kin.

However there where more than one band on Majornus, and Basiclus had spent a cat and mouse game over the weeks, tracking and eliminating the rest down, now he was following the trail of the last band.

The Eagle Claws captain looked through the gloom, ahead was Squad Laetres, Third squad, led by a marine recently inducted into the Second from the Sixth Company, Basiclus's old unit, he showed promise, possibly he would be the first sergeant in a few decades. To his side walked his command squad, to his left was his fourth sergeant, Baben, armed with a storm bolter and power axe attached to his armor. All alround him the sixty marines of the Second and Tenth where spread out looking.

They came through the bush, a large, green snake had tried to bit his ankle, Basiclus caught it and tore it in half before tossing the corpse away, some sort of plant-thing attacked Claudius, who killed it with a single shot from his bolt pistol.

It was a dangerous world alright, but not as dangerous as Asclepieion.

A vox-burst came on his helmet system.

''My lord'' came the voice of Scout sergeant Cassius.

''Yes?''

''We have found some sort of crashed Eldar airship, we are taking positions'' he reported.

''Understood''

Basiclus and his command squad broke off into a run, trampling their way through the leaves and branches towards where the Scouts had found the ship, the Second jogging after them, alert and weapons ready. He saw it, a large, angular shape that lay broken and twisted on the ground, a deep trench dug behind it through the broken jungle for about twenty meters, it appeared to be deserted.

A Scout emerged from the depths of the ruin and looked around. ''I think I spotted something move from the ship and into the jungle, could have been a small animal'' Cassius said over the vox-link.

''It's a dammed ugly thing''

The marine captain considered his options.

''Baben?''

''Yes sir?'' came the reply.

''Move up ahead with Cassius, pursue anyone that's came about, we will stay here to guard the crash site'' he said.

''If you find anything alert us'' Basiclus commanded.

''Yes, my lord''

The forms of the Fourth squad, ten purple and grey marines, jogged forward, brushing aside the knife-like bushes with ease, the forms of Cassius's scouts following behind quickly.

''Come in and guard it'' Basiclus said. ''Codex formation Alpha-Konor-Nine''

The Eagle Claws responded immediately to his instructions, forming a defensive grid around the ship, as per the instructions of the Codex Astartes, Basiclus took his command position near the front. He looked at the ship, it was monstrously graceful, but wicked looking at the same time, it appeared to be made out of some sort of dark green-black metal and was covered in razor-sharp blades.

It's innards where exposed, leaving some sort of riding seats where visible. He adjusted the vision on his helmet. He could see some sort of holding cells, probably for the debased creature's slaves.

A minute ticked by on his helmet sensors, then another, and another, and another.

Baben was not reporting back.

''Alright, we might as well blow this thing and move-'' he stopped as he noticed the faintest movement in the ship.

Something materialized from the shadowy innards and pounced on a nearby marine, driving a serrated dagger into his throat, then ripping it out in a brutal, quick movement.

Basiclus saw a shadow-skinned elder, covered in twisting runes over it's naked skin, right before it was blown to pieces by bolter fire from Laetres's squad. All that was left was a few scraps of red meat.

What was that? A debased survivor of the crashed ship? Some sort of assassin? A scout taking refugee, his mind then realized exactly what he saw.

He whirled around. ''It's an ambush! fight back!'' he roared as the jungle came alive around the marines. From the depths of the crashed ship came more of the shadowy figures, from the surrounding jungle leapt more and more armored dark elder. Bolter fire blew apart several, half-naked female elder wielding close combat weapons. A bolt of dark energy whizzed out and blew out the stomach of another marine, a stream of splinter barbs caught a marine in his knee joints, another in his arm joints.

A frag missile streaked out and tore into more Dark Eldar warriors, emerging from the jungle, blowing apart several from the shrapnel, as three marines with flamers activated their weapons, turning the jungle alight.

A shadow-creature came upon Basiclus, laughing at him, he blew it away with his storm bolter and then backhanded a creature he saw coming up out of the corner of his eye. The elder landed with a hiss before Basiclus blew it away. Two more half-naked female elder came, their raven hair dark as night and their lips full and red on their attractive faces. They possessed an almost human-like beauty as they laughed as him.

He fired his storm bolter, but the elder wyches where fast, dodging his aim and closing rapidly upon him. One threw an electrified net at him, he dodged it, but it was a feint, the two were upon him. One dove forward at eye-blurring speed, and directed his sword at his neck seal, he shifted so it was deflected by his artificer armor, he swung his blade at her and she back flipped laughing.

The other came down, trying to hamstring him, but the Second Captain already anticipated that move and brought his storm bolter down, the sword of the wych instead carved through the barrel as Basiclus twisted his body and brought the blade of Solomon Herito down, cutting her in half. The remaining Wych jumped up in the air again, driving her sword down, Basiclus blocked it as he instinctively brought up his storm bolter and pointed it at her. He squeezed the trigger and mentally cursed when he realized that it was useless.

She kicked his blade away and came in for his neck again, he clapped his gauntlets together and caught the blade in midair. And before she could wrench it away he lashed out with his leg, crushing her internal organs with a single superhuman kick. He retrieved his sword and then coolly decapitated another dark elder wych that was about to deliver a killing blow upon a stricken Laetres, as her head came upon the ground the battered sergeant leapt up, retrieving his weapons.

''Thanks my lord''

'''Don't thank me, we have walked into trap, let's turn it on our ambushers'' Basiclus said with conviction. He raised his sword and dove into the melee, while bellowing orders for his flamers to be brought up.

After six more minutes of bloody combat the Dark Eldar fled, seven marines had died, five from the weapons, and two more from the toxic-xeno poisons that not even an astartes enhanced immune system could take. At least the holy geneseed was retrieved. Apothecaries Claudius and Idaeon where struggling to save the life of five more marines, who where scratched by the dark elder weapons, whatever the xenos had coated their weapons with, it was incredible potent.

The dark eldar left over two score dead behind, most of them where the Wyches who seemed to dive forward with absolutely no regard for their own lives at all. In all the marines had achieved a favorable kill ratio, but still it did not feel like a victory.

Horror struck Basiclus. ''Baben and Cassius's squads'' he said.

''Where are they sir, are they de-'' Laetres began.

''Don't speak sergeant'' Basiclus's voice was harsh. What had he sent them on? He should have never split them up, it was his fault, he realized deep within his mind.

He had gotten cocky, thought the Eldar whereon the run, he thought he had beaten them and this was a mopping up operation.

He was wrong.

Then his helmet picked up a crunch as a dark shape emerged from the forest. He and the nearby astartes whirled around, weapons at ready.

It was Cassius, he staggered towards them, a blade emerging from his chest, through one of his twin hearts, he was bleeding from multiple wounds, then he noticed them, and staggered towards Basiclus.

''Quick! Idaeon get over here!'' he commanded the apothecary.

Before the healer could do anything, Cassius suddenly stopped, opened his mouth and his head exploded as a bolt of darkness struck it from the depths of the jungle, sick alien laughter came from the depths..

Basiclus felt hatred like he has never felt like before.

* * *

**Two weeks later**

He had lost them all, fifteen marines, due to his own arrogance, after the entered the Pain Glove and prayed aboard the chapel aboard the Sword, he soon issued orders. He took the hunt up with vigor. When over twenty terminator armored brothers of the First Company came with an appeal from the nearby Sector Governor to support a nearby Agri-world against ork pirates, he countermanded the orders of the First and took command.

He ordered that the left arm plate of the companies be painted black in mourning, and Chaplain Britannicus led them in the prayers of sorrow and vengeance.

Two week later they found the Dark eldar base and landed with a vengeance. Following a brief orbital bombardment, the first wave of Deathwind-class drop pods was launched to soften them up. The pods opened up to reveal not space marines, but assault cannons and missile launchers that blew the nearest dark eldar apart. Then came the second wave, filled with the Second Company.

Thunderhawks came in, providing air support as Basiclus led the warriors of the Second alongside the terminators of the First and the Veteran Dreadnought Xenaphon, together they carved a swathe of destruction through the xenos.

The splinter rifle, the dark lance and the sword, these could and did slay Eagle Claws, but the vengeful astartes could not be denied their vengeance, they came like a hurricane of destruction, fighting with an insane rage. Basiclus himself left command duties over to sergeant Paulus, he then proceeded to come upon the Dark elder in a berserker fury, more like a Space Wolf, or a Flesh Tearer than a son of Guilliman.

He and Chaplain Britannicus lead the attack, annihilating the elder. The Captain himself fought with the Kabal lord, he decapitated the pirate lord, despite multiple wounds, and raised the head for all to see as he dove into the combat once more before collapsing from the highly virulent poisons.

Apothecary Claudius fought tooth and nail to save his life from the virulent poisons that ran through his body, eventually he was placed in a stasis field and transported to Asclepieion, where the Chief Apothecary, Yonaz Philostratus tended to him. Philostratus was a masterful healer, and he completely purged the poisons from Basiclus's body. When he awoke from his toxin-induced coma he was told that six marines had been found alive.

Three of them where broken by torture and poisons too much for even their superhuman bodies, they where regulated to training and support roles, their lives as astartes over, three others where able to rejoin the chapter's combat ranks, haunted by what they had witnessed. Four where found dead in the torture dungeons, fortunately they where able to have their geneseed extracted and their bodies extracted for burial at the Castellum Aquila.

Five where never seen again. Basiclus was told that they might have perished when the Dark Eldar ship had been destroyed by the Imperial Navy, as it tried to leave the Majornus system. But that was cold comfort for his mistake.

It was far greater comfort that they had slaughtered every single Dark Eldar at their encampment.

* * *

**Shas'El Par'von's Command Post-Present day**

''Well, that was not successful'' Shas'el Myo'li said.

''Says you, we would have won if we had not lost the Mantas'' Vash'ka retorted.

They where all standing in a circle along with El'Par'von and the other Tau cadre commanders. Gorcuk, the new Kroot leader stood silently with his leading warriors, the Vespid Stingwing leader, whose name Vash'ka never learned, was also there, silent.

''El'Ben'ten was killed in the attack'' pointed out Myo'li.

''People die in war, commanders are no exception'' Vash'ka sneered. ''What do you expect?''

''Enough'' Par'von intervened. '''We have more pressing matters to deal with.

A single communications drone landed in the circle and activated it's holo-field, instantly a map showing the movements of the Imperial relief convoy appeared in three-dimensional detail.

''The _gue'la_ are coming to reinforce their brethren, from my estimates they are now only twenty _Tor'kan_ away, and gaining ground even as we speak'' Par'von said.

''Then what's the problem? We have to take them out before they reach the_ gue'la_ at Traknor Primary, then we can deal with those in the refinery at our leisure'' Vash'ka said.

''Because, El'Vash'ka, they are quickly gaining ground, and they have Titans'' Myo'li replied.

The Tau, when they had first encountered Imperial Titans, had been devastated by the Imperial war machines, having no real answer to the great behemoths. Since then they had developed a variety of Titan-hunting vehicles and techniques, among them the Tiger Shark variants, of these, only two had arrived just recently for Par'von's use.

''El'Vash'ka is right'' Par'von said. ''If we do nothing to the convoy, then we will risk defeat,'' he said. Vash'ka felt pride. Myo'li bristled.

''We have taken heavy losses, what troops can we afford?'' Myo'li said.

''I have three cadres in reserve, that were not committed yesterday'' Par'von said. ''I will be taking several of the least mauled Cadres and forming them into a new attack group to destroy the convoy'' he said.

He listed them off.

''Shas'el I must protest-'' Vash'ka was cut off again.

''El'Vash'ka, I understand you impatience, however your cadre is not fully rearmed and took some of the heaviest losses in the first day's assault, you will be held in reserve'' Par'von admonished.

Vash'ka felt like he was going to scream, he was so close, only four miles away from his cherished foe, yet he was denied. ''And if the attack fails?'' Vash'ka asked, sounding almost hopeful.

''Then we will attack the Refinery with everything we have, the _gue'la_ must not succeed, or they win the war''

* * *

**The Road to Traknor Primary**

The four walked like gods.

The _Belli Lux_, the _Imperius Redemptor_, the _Victoria Tarus_, all three Warhound Titans, great metal beasts, lords of death and destruction, like vast gods given shape upon the battlefield.

And dwarfing them was the _Invincus Rex_.

The Warlord gave a command view, standing heads and shoulders above it's lesser brethren. With each step it covered dozens and dozens of feet, creating miniature earthquakes with each passing step. Around them moved the purple and grey vehicles of the Eagle Claws, in standard Codex Astartes armored formation, taking his assigned place, Basiclus's command razorback churned doggedly along.

They where taking a long road, above was a large cliff, jutting along with several other dozen large rocky hills that loomed like upturned daggers over the endless ash deserts. The air was very cool, now that it was night. Along came the tanks of the Malnians and the Tallarn, countless armored vehicles crossing the great ash waste under the night sky. Save for the searchlights the vehicles where almost invisible.

Overhead flew a support flight of Thunderbolts and astartes Thunderhawks, watching and observing.

In all the convoys moved along like a great armored snake, over two hundred astartes and close to three thousand Guardsmen came in their vehicles, crossing the desert like a Great Ocean.

But the Tau where waiting for them.

From the largest of the dagger-like hills, Tau Hammerheads and Sky Rays revealed themselves, sending death above, rupturing several tracked Chimeras and Russes with their first shots. Confusion ran up the Imperial line as Tau Barracudas, Tiger Sharks and Mantas flew over the hills, behind them was a vast wave of Devilfish. Streaming over the hills came the kroot warriors, above in the air came the Vespid.

The Hydras of the guard opened fire, downing a single Tiger Shark as it came in for an attack run, along with two of it's Barracuda protectors, other Hydras opened fire at the Mantas and Vespid, along with the Whirlwind Hyperios. The Marines shot forward, the Tau would not be withdrawing now. The Land Raiders and Predators formed the first wave, using their lascannons to destroy several of the Devilfish transports, as the _Invincus Rex_ turned and opened fire at the Hammerheads and Sky Rays on the hills, it's massive weaponry blowing several apart.

''Warriors of the Second and Seventh'' Basiclus's command came over the vox-link.

. ''Move along, spearhead formation, to intercept the kroot wave and the Devilfish. Land Raiders, Predators, cover them, the Titan will cover us'' he paused.

Across the datascreen in his helmet, looking at the steady stream of combat data, Basiclus watched as the kroot where detected, along with Tau forces, above the Vespid where closing rapidly. A Rhino was destroyed by a railgun shot, it's warriors spilling out into the desert, along with a Predator, a Land Raider last one of it's lascannon. He found the source, Broadsides at the base of the hill ''Whirlwinds, fire on my mark'' Basiclus said.

Solid fuel rockets raced out from six Whirlwinds, sending them into the Broadsides, destroying several under the relentless barrage of rockets. Several Leman Russes moved up, opening fire, lending support against the Broadsides.

Upon the hill the Hammerheads destroyed four more Russes, leaving them smoking wrecks, but by now the combined fire of the _Invincus Rex_ and the _Belli Lux_ had taken their toll on the Tau gunships, who withdrew over the hill, with almost half of their number destroyed. But the Titans had lowered their guard, Mantas moved over then, Railguns sapping their void shields as the sole remaining Tigershark came into an attack run against the smaller of the two titans.

It's railguns lanced out, driving twin hypersonic rounds deep into the Titan, severely wounding it. With a great groan the immense war machine fell to the ground, defeated.

Nearby the Imperials panicked at this. However the Tau bomber's victory was short lived as a Thunderbolt gained it's tail and reduced it to scrap.

By now the Imperial where beginning to gain the upper hand in the air battle, with the Sky Rays forced off the field by the _Invincus Rex_, the added fire of the Hydras was tipping the balance. A single Manta moved towards the _Invincus Rex_, scoring three direct hits on the Warlord, however the great beast was more resilient than it's lesser cousin and slowly turned to meet the superheavy flyer.

As it's void shields came back online the Titan blasted the Manta as it tried to escape. With great holes blasted into it's superstructure the flyer jetted away and crashed into the distance in an immense explosion. At this point the pilots of the other Mantas turned around, letting the Barracudas to cover their retreat, as the Imperial aircraft and Hydra fire started to take it's toll, from their landing bays came the dark forms of the Tau Crisis suits.

The Devilfish assault wave moved up, a dozen Hammerheads and the surviving Broadsides moving up from cover to support them, blowing apart Chimeras and Russes. As the Kroot came in from the flanks, moving to cut off the Imperials in a pincer movement, Basiclus's Rhino wave moved up from behind the gunline of Land Raiders and Predators to intercept.

Underneath the pale moon the Tau clashed with the Imperium.

* * *

**Hill overlooking the way**

Shas'ui Keth'o'res peered out from a rocky outcropping at the line of the Imperial Guard Chimeras, currently the infantry fighting vehicles where opening fire at the charging kroot , the Guard remaining inside, protected, but free to fire out.

That could be a problem.

He activated his markerlight, designating a target right on it's turret. A nearby Hammerhead fired it's railgun, annihilating the Chimera, he did the same to a second Chimera, and then a third Chimera. A Malnian officer stumbled out of the wreckage, trying to rally his men, Gar'los shot him with his sniper rifle, blowing off his head with perfect accuracy as his troops milled about in confusion.

Other Guard Chimeras where freewheeling back, their guardsmen disembarking out from behind, realizing that the Broadsides and Hammerheads had come back and where turning the AFV's into metal death traps. Keth'o'res looked on grimly. Shadoweye had led the Tau counterforce to find the Imperial convoy and helped set up the attack, now they where redeployed as long-range support on the flank.

It still surprised him of how the _gue'la_ still fought, had not they learned this sort of behavior was folly on T'ros? Keth'o'res thought it was foolish, still he performed his duty anyway.

He view the swiftly bounding kroot with his distaste unconcealed beneath his helmet. He was a cool, professional soldier, and as such he despised the wild barbaric nature of his kroot allies. He much preferred the Vespid or even the _gue'la_ auxiliaries.

The Fire Warriors disembarked from their Devilfish, pulse rifles cutting down dozens of Guardsman as the kroot outflanked and cut down the retreating Malnian guard force.

A shell from a Leman Russ landed two dozen feet away from Shadoweye's position in the rocky outcropping in the foothills, debris rained upon Keth'o'res's armor, but no harm was done. The Hammerhead turned and destroyed it, seconds later a shell from another Russ landed and blew the railgun-fitted gunship into a pile of scrap on the ground. Keth'o'res inched away.

''Let's redeploy, this is getting too hot.''

* * *

**Malnian Command Chimera**

Asher rubbed his sweating forehead.

''Sir! We are getting slaughtered, the kro-'' the voice of Lieutenant Marsilas was cut off in a brutal burst of static, there was no question of about what happened to him

The Eleventh and Twelfth companies where essentially gone, if his tac-screen in his Chimera was correct, that was two of the eight companies that the Malnians brought. He blinked in irritation.

If the Tau punched a hole through here, they could potentially cut off the Guardsmen from their space marine allies, that would not do at all. He activated the vox-link in the Chimera

''Second, Sixth and Ninth Companies'' he commanded, ''Move in and destroy that wave marked on the tac-stream map'' he commanded, pressing the runes that marked out the Tau attackers.

A nearby thump sounded as well as a dull explosion. ''What was that?'' Corland asked, cradling his plasma rifle. ''That's the Tau'' Asher said grimly. ''Stop this now'' he said to the driver.

The rear ramp landed down and Asher headed out, along his command group. A trio of Tau Crisis suits had landed, the husks of two Chimeras already lay blazing. One of the Crisis suits spotted Asher and turned around. The Major opened fire with his bolt pistol, as Corland and Desk returned fire with their plasma rifles, blowing apart the battlesuit while the Major's bolt pistol picked off the arriving drones.

Three more arrived, as the command company of the Malnian Seventh's chimeras was caught under attack form the air-dropping Crisis suits. Fire from the multi-lasers and heavy bolters of three Chimeras reduced two suits to scrap as the rest retaliated, blowing up transports and slaughtering Guardsmen. Two Hellhounds flamed a Crisis suit, which fired it's fusion blaster, annihilating one of the flamer tanks, but not before it finally went down in an blazing inferno, from the combined flames.

Tess opened her mouth to say something, and then she lost her head as a series of pulse rounds from a burst cannon, reduced her upper torso into a fine pink mist, the banner of the Seventh dropped to the ground. Corland turned around and fired his plasma rifle, catching it in the arm, blowing off the limb of the offending battlesuit, before Desk's rifle took of the head of the suit which continued to fire at them.

Finally Corland's second shot blasted straight through the suit's chestpiece, killing the pilot and sending the battlesuit to the ground in a heap of scrap metal. Asher took the banner up, swearing.

Tess was a good woman, he promised himself to avenge her. He activated his vox bead. ''Seventh Company!'' he roared.

''Annihilate them!''

* * *

**Eagle Claws positions-Captain Basiclus's command**

Basiclus's command Razorback opened fire with it's heavy bolters, gunning down several kroot as they approached the marines, right after overrunning the Malnians in their Chimeras. A rail round destroyed another predator, as the Second Captain took stock of the situation quickly, staying in their vehicles would be a deathtrap, especially if the Tau where now moving up for an assault, supported by railguns.

Quickly he gave the orders, the Rhinos formed in into counterattack positions, disgorging the mounted squads under Basiclus's command, in the standard Codex Astartes crossfire response pattern. As the purple and grey warriors filed out, they moved seamlessly into the codex positions that would make the ground in front of them, into a killing zone for the rapidly bounding xenos.

They opened fire.

The Eagle Claws's disciplined and measured bolter fire, calculated as to catch the largest groups of kroot in a crossfire between the squad-deployed heavy weapons and the bolters of the line brothers, tore into the kroot. The kroot casualties were immense as they where cut down in the dozens and dozens, still they came on. As the beaked aliens begun to land from their great leaps among the marines, battle brothers armed with flamers and frag grenades responded, blowing them back.

At Basiclus's command the rhinos of the Eagle Claws withdrew in perfect coordination, the Land Raiders and Predators then withdrew and redeployed to support their disembarked battle brothers from their forward engagement positions with the Tau. In all the Eagle Claws moved like a well-oiled machine, each response flowing smoothly and perfectly from decades of harsh training, live combat conditions and the iron discipline of the Adeptus Astartes.

Laetres, Tor, Gnaeus, Kriayakos, Pompey and Rezarin all took forward positions, the Devastator squads of Halteker and Livus deployed back, Halteker targeting the Devilfish outflankers and Livus opening fire with it's heavy bolters and missile launchers into the kroot.

As the rapidly whittling numbers of the kroot finally closed with the tactical squads, the Fire Warriors finished mopping up Asher's forward recon companies and moved up, Devilfish providing covering fire as the Tau began to open fire at the marines.

Basiclus's exited his command Razorback, to join the fight, his command squad following behind him, as his vehicle withdrew, heavy bolters spitting flashes of orange into the darkness. The marines auto-senses easily pieced the moonlit night. Over two dozen kroot where heading towards the command squad, leaping over the corpses of their fallen brethren, as many more swarmed to the other astartes.

Basiclus leveled his storm bolter and opened fire, blowing three of the aliens to a bloody mist as his command squad did the same. Camillus, his plasma gun exchanged for a flamer, send a torrent of burning promethium, incinerating several of the xenos. A kroot warrior leapt high up in the air, landing behind Claudius, bringing his serrated knife at the apothecary. Before it could complete the half-turn of the movement, Stillcho gutted him with his power sword.

Several more kroot where landing, and as one the command squad drew their blades, with the exception of Paulus who activated his power fist in anticipation of the coming assault.

Basiclus brought his blade under the reach of a leaping kroot and into it's midsection, cutting the alien in half as he landed. He was on to the second kroot behind him, cutting that xenos in two, a surprise on it's avian features. He ducked the blows of two more kroot, who swung their bayonet blades at him, he fired his storm bolter, blowing them to pieces as he impaled another kroot in the chest and decapitated another as blows rained off of his artificer-forged armor.

His command squad fought with precise, controlled blows, a sharp contrast to the kroot, their power swords quickly carved through the whittled numbers of the kroot in less than a minute. A howling came as several kroot hounds leapt as Basiclus, he cut one in half as it leapt at him, and blew another apart with his storm bolter, then a kroot hound bounded and attacked his sword arm, powerful jaws closing in.

Against a normal suit of power armor it would have been damaging, but against Basiclus's artificer-forged plate it did little more than mar the paintwork, he shook it off with a powerful swing of his arm, crushing it's skull beneath his boot.

His command squad's storm bolters and flamer quickly blew apart the kroot hounds. Basiclus looked around, the Devilfish where retreating under the assault of the Land Raiders and Predators, but the Fire Warriors where moving up, and sending disciplined volleys of pulse fire into the combat.

Laetres's squad was doing well, the seven kroot warriors that survived the earlier firestorm from the triple crossfire from Laetres, Tor, and Rezarin, had closed with the first squad. To his pride the battle brothers fought back, gutting four kroot as they closed, Laetres blew apart one as it closed with his bolter and punched it in the chest, fist erupting from it's back in a crackle of energy, the other came, trying blind him with a sword, Laetres shoved his bolter against it's chest and pulled the trigger. The last kroot died, talon-like nails digging lines in his faceplate

Only two marines from Squad Tor where killed by the kroot, stabbed in the armor joints by over a several kroot warriors as the rest of the kroot landed among Rezarin, Laetres and Tor. A kroot warrior brought his bladed club arcing over the upraised combat knife of one of Rezarin's warriors, bringing it deep in his throat, blood spilled out for a few seconds, until it clotted as the warriors brought the club back out and down again on his helmet.

One of the First Squad lost a helmet, another a hand, but they beat back the kroot, Rezarin had his shoulder plate torn off by the kroot, even as he gutted the one who did it with his power sword.

Rezarin ducked another overhead slice from a kroot, even as he took a knife to his armpit, the kroot withdrew the knife and spin it around his a beheading strike, but the marine blocked it with his power sword and kicked outwards, crushing his chest and internal organs. The kroot from earlier leapt around from behind, striking at the back of Rezarin's head, but the young sergeant was already suspecting the strike, and moved so that it hit his other shoulder pad. With one smooth strike Rezarin decapitated the kroot warrior. All around him his warriors fought.

The kroot where ferocious, but most of then where already dead by the time they reached the marines, and they landed sufficient numbers to bowl over and break the marines carefully coordinated formations.

Tor's chainsword gutted a kroot, churning it's guts into a bloody mess, Laetres battered aside the kroot blades with his bulk and crushed the skull of a kroot who tired to hamstring him.

Squads Kriayakos and Pompey moved in, flamers blazing and combat knives drawn, those squads where deployed deep to the rear of the formation, and as a result had suffered no casualties and had fought few kroot warriors, finishing them off quickly. They came in, stabbing and slashing with chainswords and combat knives, driving back the remaining kroot warriors, slaughtering those who did not flee rapidly away form the combat.

In the distance Laetres spotted Tau Fire warriors moving up into firing groups to attack the tactical squads.

''Find cover and hold ground'' he ordered.

The three squads responded, as the First squad under Laetres took cover behind a burning Razorback. The marines where now on the backfoot, the Fire Warriors outgunning them form a distance, now stopping to maintain a comfortable firing distance. Several rounds hit Basiclus's command squad, but at such range and at night, the astartes only received superficial damage to their armor. The tacticals where less lucky.

A blue streak hit an astartes in the knee, sending him down, several more tore through the side of a chestplate, another marine went down to a round in his neck seal, but the Eagle Claws remained on their feet, sending back bolter fire despite their bad position. They got lucky, it was night and few of the Shas'la had blacksun filters.

Basiclus quickly activated his vox-link. ''Rabix, Trajan, move up, Britannicus, move up and outflank'' he commanded. He sent out another brief order as a quartet of Predator Destructors moved up, opening fire on the Tau.

The fire slew over two dozen fire warriors from the defenders. The Tau scattered before it, the tactical squads moving behind the great armored tanks. Two Predator Annihilators opened fire at the Tau Hammerheads. A Destructor exploded, sending shrapnel flying everywhere, but the marines where safe with their power armor. Another report came into Basiclus's vox-link as he and his command group retreated behind a Razorback.

''We can't move yet sir'' came the commander of _Findor's Pride_. ''We are just barely surviving the barrage from these dammed Hammerheads, we just popped smoke, we are lucky that we're at night and the visibility is poor or else we would have been dead now''

''I see'' the Captain turned around and looked up. ''Don't worry about that'' Basiclus said as the _Invincus Rex_ opened fire with it's massive weaponry, followed by the _Victoria Tarus_.

The Tau attempted to fire their railguns at the great beasts, but their void shields where up and they barely had time to get off a few shots before they where annihilated by the immense heavy weaponry.

''They will not trouble you any more, move in Brother-Sergeant'' Basiclus said.

''Yes sir''

Basiclus went to another channel.

''Whirlwinds, open fire on the rear Fire Warriors, cut of their escape'' he said with satisfaction as they obeyed his orders, sending dozens of solid fuel rockets into the Tau.

A quartet of Land Raiders moved towards the Tau, lascannons blowing up retreating Devilfish, the heavy bolters blazing, blowing apart several Fire Warriors as the great behemoths came in.

_Findor's Pride_ was in front, behind it was _Phoenix's Wrath_, the _Wrath_'s flamestorm cannons and assault cannon, slew many of the retreaing kroot, blowing them apart with a hailstorm of heavy explosive shells and sent an ocean of fire into the Tau positions.

Pulse rifle shot bounced off uselessly from their hulls as the Tau attempted to retreat, but the Land Raiders where upon them, great wheels crushing xenos under their steel tracks and opening fire. The assault doors opened and terminator squads Trajan and Rabix moved out, coming hard and fast into the Tau. A Land Raider called the _Imperial Claw_ opened up and disgorged Veteran squad Fulgerion who opened fire with their bolters.

The thunder hammers of Squad Rabix rose and landed, crushing Fire Warrior after Rire Warrior, the alien's warriors desperate attempts at close combat ineffective. Rabix's own lighting claws carved a bloody path through the Tau., decapitating one, cutting through the stomach of another ,removing the knife arm of a female fire warrior, killing on and on.

With a thud, a Crisis suit with a plasma rifle landed behind the Terminators and shot one dead, blowing a hole through the helmet with it's weapon. As it's corpse slumped to the ground one of Squad Rabix's terminators turned around, catching another plasma shot in it's storm shield. With a mighty crack the shot was absorbed by the energy field emitted by the shield, and the Terminator took a step forward, swinging his thunder hammer at the Crisis suit, which blasted off right before it connected.

The Terminator growled in frustration. As if hearing his cry, a terminator armed with an assault cannon from Trajan's squad turned around and blew the suit to pieces at close range with his weapon, the heavy rounds piecing the armor of the suit. More came flying in, blazing with burst cannons and flamers, but failing to destroy a single First Company terminator, none of them equipped with heavy anti-armor weaponry.

More Crisis suits landed, those armed with fusion blasters had the choice of terminators or the Land Raiders, they opened fire on the Land Raiders. Molten slag ran down the front armor of the Phoenix' Wrath, as another shot blew off the left flamestorm attachment. Warning screams came from the tank's machine spirit as it registered the damage.

It's commander popped up and manned the multi-melta, a well-aimed plasma round took his head off, as the Tau Crisis suit began to fly away as the assault cannon began to track him.

The Crisis suit was crushed under the weight of a Crozius Arcanum as Chaplain Britannicus landed on it from above in mid-air, his jump pack flaring, in mid-flight he leapt off, activating his thrusters again, landing among the Fire Warriors. His strong, baritone voice sounded on the vox as the rest of the assault squads Gallus and Felix, landed among the XV8's and the Fire Warriors, immediately closing with the help of their flight packs.

A XV8 disabled the right track of the Imperial Claw with a cleverly aimed shot, he was immediately swarmed by three assault marines, who carved deep gashes into his armor. The suit deflected a chainsword slash with it's burst cannon arm, blasting away an astartes, and kicked away another before the chainsword bit deep into it's side.

The suit fired it's fusion blaster, blowing off a arm off one of the marines, before it lost it's own arm and was forced to retreat, all around him the Eagle Claws assault marines closed in, flamers sending gouts of death. It was less than forty marines against almost two hundred Tau, but the Marines where coming in hard and fast before the Tau knew what hit them, slaughtered dozens of the xenos.

More Crisis suits came opening fire with their weapons, plasma rounds pierced the power armor of two marines and another was torn apart by a hail of assault cannon rounds as other weapons blasted away chunks of power armor. But the assault marines could not be stopped, they came on.

Half the Crisis suits where gone under the assault of the skilled, close combat squads before they began to pull back, three suits offering covering fire to the rest, as they tried to jet away. The three paid for their lives as Chaplain Britannicus landed among them, Crozius tearing apart their armor and ending the lives of the Shas'ui with impeccable skill and strength.

As Sergeant Trajan hacked down the last Crisis suit, he understood. The VX8's where not trying to beat them back, but to buy time for the Fire Warriors, whose Devilfish had come moved back to them. However only some of them escaped, many where cut down on their way to the transports by Britannicus's assault marines, others where blasted by their Whirlwinds, the _Victoria Tarus_ blew apart four of the Devilfish that escaped.

But the Claws had thrown back the assault.

* * *

**The Battlefield**

The Tau Crisis suits had come, dropping among the Guard, blowing up dozens of tanks and transports and killing hundreds as they attacked with Fire Warriors and Hammerheads from two sides.

Jan Asher led his men from the front lines, despite heavy casualties, he organized a tight defense and destroyed the interfering crisis suits with massed lasgun fire and sheer numbers, allowing the Tanks and heavy weapons to be brought up to blast away the Tau Fire Warrior teams.

The battle was over past midnight.

The Tau had taken heavy losses, losing a Manta with another badly damaged, as well as losing practically of their Hammerheads and Sky Rays deployed, and most of their Barracudas, Par'von's reserve cadres where decimated utterly.

But they had done damage, hundreds of Guardsman where dead or wounded, dozens and dozens of tanks where gone, Prince Naladin was knocked unconscious by shrapnel during the battle, his second in command dead. The Eagle Claws had lost seven dead marines and twice that wounded in some way, shape, or form. One Land Raider was disabled, along wither three destroyed Predators and four destroyed Razorbacks and Rhinos.

Once Apothecaries Claudius and Idaeon of the Second Company had retrieved the geneseed of the fallen, Basiclus prepared to set out, sending his most badly wounded on the Thunderhawks and marshalling his remaining vehicles for another push. He sent a request to the highest ranking Guard commander, Colonel Asaji of the Tallarn, what he found was less than pleasing, over half the Guard would be unable to continue, as a result of them being wounded or lost transports.

Barely a thousand Guardsmen would be able for an offensive, Jan Asher would lead them.

With that Basiclus and the Second and Seventh companies, set off at maximum speed as the last hours of night fell away into dawn.


	6. Inferno and Death

**(Author's Note: Well here TheLoneHunter has been kind enough to edit this for me. I apologise for the lateness of this. I've had a busy scheduleKnow I know Loric's scene with Par'von resembles Conrad Deis, I assure you that Loric was pattrened after Iron Hand Straken and the whole fight was written and planned before I read TheLoneHunter's chapter.)**

**Claws Glory**

**(Inferno and Death)**

**Guest Editor - TheLoneHunter**

* * *

**Twelve miles from Traknor**

The sun ascended over the horizon, casting its light over the Pathfinder team Shadoweye as they lay upon a large plateau.

Keth'o'res peered through a rangefinder unit, patiently scanning the ground. A stream of purple and grey tanks was moving steadily across the plain, bulky and well armored, some with heavy turrets atop them. From the intelligence files he had read, he recognized then as a type of vehicle that the enhanced _gue'la_ used. They had participated in the battle the night before, of course, but this was the first time he had ever seen them in the daylight. Other vehicles flanked them, painted with desert camouflage. These were the type used by the normal Guardsmen, and Keth'o'res had encountered these far more often in the past few months. They were moving in a tight convoy, while a pair of large, boxy gunships swooped overhead.

Keth'o'res was not worried. He and his team were well camouflaged in the rocky depressions below.

The Pathfinder Shas'ui watched as the vehicles rumbled by in the dozens, carefully noting which ones had suffered battle damage and which still possessed functioning weapons. It was critical to gather any information on the enemy, even the tiniest details.

Several minutes passed before the convoy disappeared from sight and the boxy gunships vanished into the sky. With one last cautious look, Keth'o'res threw off the camouflaged brush he had been using and rose to his feet. He removed a device from his belt and pressed a button on the side, sending out a signal that would summon their Devilfish from a nearby canyon.

By the time the Imperials noticed they had been there, the Pathfinders would be long gone.

Par'von's command post

Par'von, Myo'li, and Vash'ka were all meeting again. Most of the cadre commanders had barely gotten three hours of sleep, and were feeling quite tired from hours of standing guard, but they were trying their best to stay alert. Vash'ka leaned casually against the leg of his inactive battlesuit, while Myo'li coolly stood at attention. Par'von was calmly assessing a nearby holo-map projected by a drone, and the other Shas'el and Shas'vre were gathered, along with the representatives from the auxiliaries.

"Our advance units are moving to join the field cadres," reported Shas'el Myo'li. "Those that could not regroup have dispersed to the north and are inbound towards Kro'vas."

"I see," Par'von responded, deep in thought. "It is clear at this point that we must hurry, or lose all."

A voice sounded over a nearby comm drone as it hovered in front of the Shas'el and activated. A sharp, ugly burst of static filled the air.

"_Shadoweye to El'Par'von,"_ the voice of Keth'o'res spoke, slightly broken due to the interference. _"We've spotted a column of gue'la armor closing on allied positions."_

"How far is it?" asked the Shas'el.

"Transmitting coordinates now. Stand by."

The drone's hologram sputtered and changed to show a tactical projection of the Imperial tanks. Par'von took a deep look at the situation, formulating a battle plan in his mind. "Thank you, Pathfinder. We must move quickly if we are to counter the _gue'la_ attack."

"Of course!" Vash'ka sneered. "You can't put me off of that any longer. Sunknife is ready for combat! There are others who wish to do the same thing. Am I correct, Gorcuk?" he asked the Kroot standing next to him.

The High Shaper was tall and powerful, with green war paint daubing his quills and face. He was usually tall and muscular for a Kroot, the result of eating the flesh of many Orks on the moons of Sas'tey. He even wore an orkish cleaver across his broad, muscular back, a trophy taken from a Warboss on Sas'tey. A battered rifle was slung over his shoulder, but he rarely used that in combat.

"Yes," Gorcuk replied in a guttural tone, flexing his quills. "My kin are angered by the loss of their brethren. We wish to feast on the strong ones who have slain so many of us."

Some of the Tau commanders look disgusted at the aliens, while Vash'ka merely grinned. "Shas'el, the affirmative rests. We should strike immediately, should we not?"

Par'von took a deep breath. "Yes, I see. High Shaper Gorcuk, are the Knarlocs ready for battle?"

"Yes, Shas'el. I shall place three at your disposal," the Kroot answered.

"Very well, then," Par'von began. "We will strike with two Mantas in the first wave. However, we will have no air support, as most of our fighters are either destroyed or too badly damaged to fly on such short notice. The two destroyers are all we have left."

"Then it would be best to waste no more time," Vash'ka said, clenching his fingers into a tight fist. "We must go now."

"Agreed."

* * *

**Traknor Primary**

The remaining Hammerheads and Sky Rays opened fire, the last machines available to Par'von's cadres. After the heavy casualties that the _Invincus Rex_ had inflicted upon them, only six could be mustered. Rail rounds and missiles blew holes into the weakened and damaged super structure. If the full complement of gunships had been there, then the walls would have been destroyed. However, as they were under strength, it would take time.

A flock of Devilfish, carrying eight full cadres worth of Fire Warriors, soared toward the Imperials, followed by the last remaining warriors of Gorcuk's kindred. Despite losing over two-thirds of his warriors, the High Shaper still had a few hundred to commit. The Vespid contingent hovered alongside the Mantas and four Orcas flew above, filled with battlesuits and Fire Warriors. They had contributed the smallest contingent, but had taken the least casualties. As of now, they remained mostly at full strength.

Flocks of Piranhas came, covering the Devilfish wave. Inside the Imperial base, Loric and Kommneus began to issue counter-fire orders. Five Piranhas were destroyed, their armor pierced, turning them into burning heaps of metal that crashed into the ground. Four Devilfish followed, taking their Fire Warrior passengers with them. But the rest flew on as the few remaining Broadsides and Hammerheads began to pinpoint the Imperial weapons and respond with their own.

Val'try's Ghostfire squad moved, along with four other squads, across the rock, their shimmering forms coming up in the orange shades of the morning dawn.

Then Bal'ya stepped on a mine. He was killed instantly, the krak grenades being enough to blow him to pieces and scatter bits of his armor and flesh over the landscape. Blood droplets decorated the plates of Val'try's suit. Two more explosions erupted from the ground, sending two more Shas'ui to their graves in a chain detention of hidden krak grenades.

Val'try looked around. This was not good. Someone quite skilled had booby trapped this area of approach, making it hard to approach. The Tau had sent in mine-clearing drones the day before, but only at the walls themselves. Although several dozen drones were destroyed, the Tau had managed to clear out the landing sites around the walls fairly well. They had not, however, anticipated that the mines would be placed in these areas.

But now the Imperials had spotted them, thanks to the body of the wounded Shas'ui and the grenades. "Remain perfectly still," Val'try warned, cursing as several missiles and dozens of rounds flew past. A vast series of explosions tore through the ash waste, kicking up orange dust and dark brown dirt in thick great clouds that settled over the landscape.

The Imperials had encountered Stealth suits only a few times before, but when they had, it had been devastating. A transport full of Fire Warriors they could handle, but the Stealth teams were something else entirely. Therefore, they took no chances.

When the smoke cleared, only Val'try and four others remained, two from Ghostfire and two from Swiftblade. He was close to despair. It was hard to believe that he had lost so many of his squadmates.

"Come with me. You are Ghostfire now," he said simply. The two former Swiftblades gave a short nod before joining in as Val'try and the others moved out quickly.

* * *

**Traknor Primary**

Great chunks of masonry fell from the ceiling, along with the screaming forms of stricken Guardsmen. Kommneus stood with Chemosian, Phocas, Welis, Marius and Colonel Loric inside the Guard command post he had set up.

The colonel sniffed the air. "Sounded like a big one."

They were in a large room, about fourteen meters wide. A large desk in the middle was covered in communications equipment, while ammunition had been piled in the corner. Kommneus looked around in distaste as a piece of the ceiling masonry fell down. His genetically enhanced senses were almost overwhelmed by the thick, pungent stench of sweat and mold from the walls.

"This is the final one, isn't it sir?" Marius questioned.

Kommneus nodded. "Colonel, how are your men?"

"Fine. Mishka's whipped them into a real frenzy."

Kommneus scowled at the mention of the woman's name. "Did you take my plans into account?" he asked.

"Of course," Loric answered. "I have withdrawn most of my soldiers to the inner walls. We will resist them every step of the way."

"I see." The captain turned to Chemosian. "Brother-Librarian, have you sent the message to Basiclus yet?"

The Librarian's brow furrowed in concentration.

"I've already done that," he said. "All we can do now is fight and hope for rescue."

Kommneus's face turned ugly. Chemosian knew the personal feelings the captain had about the mission. Every man wanted to be riding over the hill, and no one wanted to be left behind. It was a matter of pride and honor for the captain of the Fifth Battle Company. Although Chemosian trusted and respected his Captain to the highest degree, he wondered whether it was the right decision or not to send Kommneus's already depleted company to do this.

He dismissed it from his thoughts.

"Well then." Kommneus turned to Loric and grasped his bionic hand. "Colonel, I can tell you now that is we do not survive this, it's an honor to fight alongside a warrior such as yourself."

Loric laughed. "I'm afraid I can't comprehend what you just said. Defeat? Never. The men will hold. I can assure you on that, Brother-Captain."

"Then let us go to our stations," Kommneus said, sliding on his helmet with relish. "The time for talking is over."

* * *

**Traknor Primary walls - east half**

The carcasses of several Devilfish and over a dozen Piranhas decorated the ash wastes in front of Traknor as more and more of the walls crumbled away under the relentless fire from the Hammerheads.

The Mantas passed overhead, casting great shadows onto the ground. They opened fire with railguns and ion cannons, sending flocks of Seeker missiles spiraling downward. From their prior experiences, the Guard and Marines had already been rushing into cover when the Mantas came over. However, that did not prevent several dozen Guardsmen and a pair of Astartes from being ripped to pieces. The Whirlwinds did not engage the Mantas, but sent their missiles into the Orcas. One gunship crashed into the ground, sending a great fiery explosion over the wrecks of the Devilfish from the first Tau assault.

Another strafing run from the Mantas reduced the Whirlwinds to scrap. The Tau craft opened their bay doors, and sixteen battlesuits and eight Devilfish roared out. Missiles and lascannon shots angled up as the destroyers swooped away. Par'von needed them for an air reserve against the possible Imperial relief convoy. However, they had already done enough damage.

Three XV8s were torn to shreds, along with two of the Devilfish. The Tau transports touched down, opening fire with their burst cannons, while the Crisis suits immediately landed near the strongpoints and opened fire. Missiles, burst cannons, and flamers slew dozens of Elysians as their officers rallied their soldiers to fight back. A firestorm of las-rounds and heavy weapons fire blew apart four more Crisis suits.

But the drop cadres had already done their job.

The wave of Devilfish moved over the wall, followed quickly by the Piranhas. The skimmers quickly moved into new positions as hatches were flung open. Thin black lines fell from the hovering transports as Fire Warriors rappelled down quickly. Noting this, Loric bellowed orders at his reserves, and a storm of las-fire stabbed towards the Fire Warriors, felling dozens. But it was too little, too late. More Crisis suits leapt from the Orcas, led by a triumphant Vash'ka, whose weapons blazed along with his elite Sunknife cadre. Over the wall came more battlesuits; Par'von's command cadre. They quickly took up fire support positions, moving out to aid the Fire Warrior assault at the east buildings.

Pulse rounds cut down the Elysians as they began to withdraw from their dugouts into the safety of the inner refinery, where they could have more protection from the Tau weight of fire. From out of the skies soared the Vespids, almost two hundred of them. Rooftop gunners and snipers sent a hailstorm of fire into the air, but the Stingwings responded with their own weapons as soon as they closed range.

A trio of Vespids dropped into the access hall linking the north and east refineries. As soon as they landed, they were torn to pieces by a dozen las-rounds. Elysian troops hurried up as more and more aliens buzzed in, their weapons firing. From the end of the hall appeared an Elysian captain and seventy Guardsmen, armed with flamers and grenade launchers. The soldiers began opening fire at the buzzing Stingwings that filled the roofs and hallways.

Kommneus dashed around the corner and swore as he saw the Vespids. Behind him, his command squad let loose with a volley of storm bolter shots and flamer bursts. Squad Nero ran alongside him, shooting at the approaching xenos. The crossfire between the Guardsmen and Marines blew apart and roasted dozens of Stingwings. Chattering frantically, they soared back up to the roof, unwilling to enter the rooms again in the face of such firepower.

Kommneus activated his vox-link. "Phocas, how goes the situation to the north?"

"_Tolerably, sir,"_ a harsh vox-burst sounded over the din of battle. _"We have seven skimmers and six suits on us, but Nero, Weilis, Elgabalus, Talken and Severus are holding their own."_

"Good," replied Kommneus. "I'll be there."

Traknor North

The forms of three XV8s littered the ground alongside two-dozen Fire Warrior corpses as the Tau advanced on the defending Marines and Guardsmen at the Traknor North refinery.

Phocas hunkered down in a firing slit, his squad's plasma gun and plasma cannon raining fire on the Fire Warriors that were slowly advancing, bursts of plasma slew three Fire Warriors, and a plasma round tore into a Devilfish, blowing off its forward turret. The Tau soldiers had breached the wall with their skimmers, supported by Manta-deployed Crisis suits that moved in, supporting their brethren.

A Marine fell beside Phocas, clutching his destroyed chestplate as he was torn apart by bustcannon fire. Phocas fired back with his bolter, blowing apart a pair of Fire Warriors with the explosive shots. Suddenly, a pulse round tore the bolter from his hand. Cursing, Phocas picked up his weapon and turned to the accompanying Devastator squads.

"We need to suppress them!" he ordered. "Base of fire, shift forward!"

Elgabalus and Talken were opening fire at the advancing battlesuits when Phocas's group came in. Leaving the tacticals to cover them from the XV8s, they set up positions near the Fire teams and began laying down a storm of heavy bolter shots.

A nearby wall burst apart as the form of the Dreadnought Xenaphon emerged, the barrels on his assault cannon spinning as he launched a steady stream of shells into the Fire Warriors. Next to him stood Dreadnought Caius, armed with a missile launcher attachment and a lascannon arm. Quickly, his targeting augers took mark and blew a Devilfish to pieces.

Then Kommneus arrived, sprinting towards a piece of large rubble as a plasma burst almost hit him. The heat scored the paint on his armor and his cloak as he hit the ground alongside his command squad. He opened fire with his storm bolter, killing a Fire Warrior. A pair of pulse rounds ricocheted off his shoulder pad. Quickly assessing the situation, Kommneus activated his vox-link again.

"Take out the Devilfish! Severus, Sulla, prepare for assault!" he commanded coldly, as the combined gunnery of Elgabalus and Caius blew another Devilfish to scrap. The transports began to maneuver away, redirecting their fire toward the Dreadnoughts. Four more Crisis suits jetted into the air, catching Yonaz's squad in a crossfire as they emerged from the building. Plasma rifles and burstcannons slew three of his Marines, but the Astartes responded back, blowing off the arm of a retreating battlesuit.

A well-aimed series of shots from a plasma gun blew apart another XV8 as the last one retreated, firing as it went. The others were opening fire at the Elysians, landing among the platoons and slaughtering them before the Guard heavy weapons and Marine bolters forced them back.

Then over sixteen purple and grey shapes blasted off from the roof of Traknor North, having climbed up there seconds ago. They landed among the Fire Warriors and dove right in. An assault squad; Severus and Sulla's vanguard veterans, both repeating their assault from the previous day, tearing into the Tau with chainswords and bolt pistols.

A Crisis suit flew into battle, firing its burst cannon. An Assault Marine lost an arm to the volley, while Sulla's armor was riddled with craters. The veteran leapt into the air, triggering his jump pack. Using the momentum, he raised his thunder hammer and brought it down upon the Crisis suit, crushing it into the ground like a tin can with incredible force.

"I'm going in! Xenaphon, Caius, cover us! Yonaz! Nero! Let's go!" he ordered.

Immediately, over twenty Eagle Claws followed him, their bolters firing as they took up positions behind the great Dreadnoughts, using them as shields against the Tau burstcannons and pulse rifles. Bolter rounds and assault cannon fire slew several Fire Warriors, but to their credit, the Shas'uis of several squads managed to fall back and return fire, but they were suppressed now as the Marines had already closed in.

Pulse round after pulse round ricocheted off Licinus's armor plating as his shots forced the last of the Devilfish to withdraw. Calculating the range, he opened fire at several retreating Fire Warriors, tearing most of them to pieces. Before he could reload, a Crisis suit landed next to him and opened fire with a fusion blaster, blowing out his legs. With a mighty groan, the ancient war machine toppled over, hitting the ground with a great thud. Kommneus leapt over the machine and brought his power sword down, cutting into the cockpit of the Crisis suit right as it was turning away to target Xenaphon.

The Tau had nowhere to retreat to now, with only a crumbling wall at their backs.

"Close in! Assault formations!" Kommneus ordered.

The Astartes moved in, Xenaphon leading the way. With the rapidly dwindling number of Tau battlesuits, there was little they could to hurt a Dreadnought like Xenaphon, whose assault cannon and heavy flamer blazed as he charged into the Fire Warriors. Behind him, Yonaz and Nero charged in with Kommneus's command squad, closing in to join with Severus and Sulla.

With nowhere to retreat, the Fire Warriors could only make a last stand. Although they fought bravely, there were too many Marines, closing in too fast. Within five minutes, every single Fire Warrior had been killed.

Kommneus withdrew his power sword from the corpse of a Tau Shas'ui. Suddenly, a large section of the northeastern corner simply collapsed. Dust and smoke filled the air, but the Marine's senses easily pierced the gloom. Kommneus's eyes widened as he detected a pair of massive shapes moving through the smoke.

Two Greater Knarlocs emerged from the breach, spittle dripping from their mouths as they screeched and roared. Behind them, dozens and dozens of Kroot trailed behind at a safe distance.

"Heavy weapons! Kill those dammed things!" Kommneus screamed into the vox-link. He hardly needed to tell his men what to do, as every single Astartes opened fire. But the aliens simply ignored the shots, even as they blasted away chunks and pieces of flesh from the large creatures. One of the Knarlocs swung its head down and bit off the upper torso of a Marine, while another smashed two more under its great bulk.

Kommneus continued to bellow orders, firing at the lurking shapes of the Kroot who where prodding the Knarlocs forward. One of the creatures roared as it lost its handlers and went berserk, lashing around at Kroot and Astartes alike as the two forces clashed in the narrow confines of the broken wall.

The wave of Carnivores slammed into the scattered Marines, killing the first few before they could redirect their fire. At the sight of their dead battle-brothers, the Astartes raised their bolters and let loose with a devastating salvo that tore through the alien ranks. Even with the explosive shells pouring in, the Kroot pushed on, engaging the Imperials at close range.

But the two great beasts themselves were dangerous enough, ripping apart two more Marines as they charged on through the Imperial lines. The Astartes squads began to fall back, firing in desperation. Squad Elgabalus blew great wounds into the Knarlocs with lascannons and krak missiles, tearing away huge chunks of muscle and bone. To the sergeant's amazement, they refused to die.

Xenaphon strode forward and tackled the nearest Knarloc, sending it skidding back several feet. The great power fist gouged great wounds in the alien's hide, but the creature was surprisingly unaffected. Roaring in fury, it closed its monstrous beak around the machine, tearing chunks of adamantium and ceramite from its hull.

But the Venerable Dreadnought was not down yet. As the monster's claws sheared off his assault cannon arm, Xenaphon grabbed the head of the beast and closed his massive fist tightly, activating its heavy flamer. The Knarloc lashed about and struggled, crushing more arriving Carnivores as its skull was slowly crushed and roasted at the same time by the immense pressure.

After several seconds, the great beast's struggles stopped and its body went slack as Xenaphon crushed its skull and pushed it away, activating his heavy flamer.

Sergeant Sulla activated his jump pack, landing on the top of the remaining Knarloc, barely hanging on as the thing went berserk, crushing both Kroot and Astartes alike in its confusion. Digging his boots into the leathery skin, Sulla steadied himself, trusting in his legs to hold on successfully. He lifted his thunder hammer and brought it down with all this strength. The mighty weapon smashed into the skull of the Knarloc and crushed it, annihilating its tiny brain with one great blow. As the beast's huge bulk hit the ground, Sulla leapt off, hitting the ground with a loud thump.

Kommneus, meanwhile had recovered, gutting a Kroot that tried to attack him with his power sword. Kicking the corpse away, he retrieved his heavy bolter and plunged into battle once again.

"Hold them off!" he shouted.

The Astartes charged forward to close the gap quickly before the Kroot could get past the breach. Four Marines armed with flamers opened fire, turning the breach into an inferno and driving the aliens back.

"_Brother-Captain!"_ a voice sounded urgently in his vox-link. It was Sergeant Fulgerion.

"Yes?" he responded.

"_The Tau have forced their way into the eastern building! We need reinforcements now!"_

"On our way!" Turning around, the captain issued quick orders for Xenaphon and Nero to hold; an easy task, considering that the Kroot where unable to bring the majority of their numbers to bear and the flamers of Nero and Xenaphon were up to the task.

Kommneus turned to his Marines. "Brother Elgabalus, redeploy to the east! Talken, cover the honored ancient and Nero in case they break through!"

A chorus of affirmatives answered him.

* * *

**Traknor-Eastern Refinery**

Several Piranhas preceded Vash'ka's Sunknife Cadre, followed by several of his XV8s and a trio of Devilfish filled with Fire Warriors. Armed with fusion blasters, the light skimmers swooped into the junction where the access hall met the eastern refinery, locked on with their weapons systems, and opened fire. The grey stone warped and melted away, revealing the inner access halls. The hole was large enough for two Crisis suits to move in side by side.

Speedily, the Piranhas turned about and swooped away, even as a pair of missiles blew two of the craft out of the sky before they could fully repeat their turning maneuver. Fire from the Devilfish silenced the crews.

Vash'ka landed first and sprinted inside where a few dozen shocked and disorganized Guardsmen were trying to recover from the blast. The Shas'el opened fire with his burstcannon and plasma rifle, and two of his Shas'vre strode in behind him, killing as they went. Four more battlesuits entered as the Devilfish disgorged the Fire Warriors teams, who rushed in behind.

"The defenses are breached!" Vash'ka cried out into his communication link. It was a general broadcast, but he was directing it to Myo'li and Par'von, to show them what exactly he was made of.

A Guard officer rushed at him from a side hall, wielding a chainsword. Vash'ka's suit armor caught the blow, though several small chunks of metal were torn away. The Shas'el activated his retractable khopesh and brought it down upon the human, splitting him crown to chin.

"Move out!" he commanded.

He smashed through a wall, straight into more Guardsmen. Instantly, Vash'ka was among them, firing his weapons. He had already exhausted his missile racks when, but his burstcannon and plasma rifle proved to be more than sufficient for dealing with several dozen foes in a cramped hallway.

Suddenly a Crisis suit exploded next to him. He whirled around and his heart leapt. _Gue'la_ Marines! Four of them, armored in purple and grey, different yet similar to the ones who had been defeated by the _Saum'ka Uash'o _in the Gereziad conflict.

A plasma round passed him by mere inches and took another one of his battlesuits in the chest, blowing out its chassis. Vash'ka whirled around, opening fire with his plasma rifle and burst cannon and slaying a Marine. One of his Shas'vres, Ral'mae, slew another Astartes with a shot from his fusion blaster.

Vash'ka fired his jump pack and shot toward the Space Marines. He could see they were taken back by his charge. Grinning, he raised his arm and unsheathed his armblade as one of the Eagle Claws brought a chainsword to bear. Parrying the Marine's strike, he lashed out and drove his XV8's foot into its chest, launching the armored warrior through the air and into the opposite wall.

The other enemy shoulder-charged him, sending his battlesuit stumbling back a few feet. Vash'ka got up, his head whirling. The chainsword-wielding Astartes was coming at him, its blade raised. He fired his plasma rifle and blew a hole in the Marine's chest, sending it sprawling dead to the ground.

He felt excitement ringing, his muscles tensing. This was it, this was exactly what he wanted.

"Are you all right, Shas'el?" Ral'mae asked him, concern in his voice.

"I'm fine!" Vash'ka snapped. "Press on!"

A missile swooped in out of nowhere and exploded in the midst of three Fire Warriors, engulfing them in a storm of fire and shrapnel. Vash'ka spotted an Astartes holding a missile tube and several Guardsmen firing lasguns. The _gue'la _weapons were not much to be worried about, but the missile….

He raised his plasma rifle and opened fire. The blue lance of energy seared past the Marine and incinerated an adjacent Guardsman, turning the man into a cloud of white ashes and half a sizzling torso before he could scream.

Vash'ka roared with cruel laughter as his Crisis suits closed in around the surviving Imperials. "Onward! Kill them all!"

* * *

**Outside**

"Shas'el!" Myo'li shouted as she landed beside Par'von. "Vash'ka…he is…"

"I know," the commander sighed. "I do not approve, but he has made great progress into the enemy lines."

The two battlesuit pilots stood at the rear of the Tau advance. In front of them marched ranks of Fire Warriors and packs of Kroot, while flocks of Vespids buzzed overhead. Devilfish and shoals of Piranhas moved along to attack the eastern refinery. Despite the heavy causalities they had taken while forcing their way into the wall, they now where about to finally reach the refineries themselves.

"He disobeyed orders. Warriors who ignore the chain of command are unfit to lead," Myo'li stated coolly.

"That is for me to decide, not you, Shas'el," Par'von replied, scanning the new combat data on his battlesuit's interface, "But we cannot argue with success."

"What do you want me to do?" asked Myo'li.

"We exploit the hole Vash'ka punched in the defense. You take three cadres, along with the Kroot and Vespids, and move in to cut the facilities in half. I will take the eastern refinery."

"The fighting is at close range. Would the Kroot not be more useful there?"

"The willingness to question orders is a sign of intellect," Par'von replied. "It allows you to think and revise your plans, but that does not mean you can ignore the order. The Kroot will be attacking the east refinery anyway, if all goes according to plan. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Shas'el."

"Excellent. _Ko'vash Tau'va_."

"_Ko'vash Tau'va_," Myo'li replied as they both flew off. Wasting no time, she issued orders to her troops rapidly. Three cadres, plus supporting troops, suddenly wheeled around, changing the angle of their attack over a hundred feet to the right, at the access hall between the northern and eastern refineries.

Meanwhile, Par'von's cadres pressed on, with fusion-blaster armed troops and broadsides blasting a series of holes in the eastern refinery.

Advancing under a hailstorm of lasfire, the Tau came, weapons blazing.

* * *

**Eastern refinery hallways.**

Dozens of Fire Warriors and Vespid filled the hallways, fighting at close range with the Astartes under Clakus and Chemosian. This was the kind of warfare the Marines excelled at, where their genetic gifts and power armor helped tremendously.

Chemosian threw out his fist and hurled a ball of green flames at the nearest Fire Warrior, setting its armor alight with crackling energy. A pulse round struck the side of his helmet, ricocheting off, while another whizzed by his elbow plate and hit his force sword. The Librarian turned and extended a hand towards the offenders. Another torrent of warp flame engulfed the Fire Warriors instantly, burning them to death.

The hallway was nearly cleared, but the din of battle was engulfing the rest of the buildings. An explosion sounded, sending chips of rock and plaster to the scorched floor tiles. The entire place reeked with the smell of sweat, dirt, and corpses. Thrown-away ration packs and spare lasguns littered the ground along with viscera and blood, both Tau and human.

"Let's move. I feel Fulgerion nearby," Chemosian said, breaking into a run, turning around the corner they found there way to a small firefight between a Crisis suit and a Guard platoon in the corridors. Las-rounds and burstcannon shots whipped back and forth as the armored battlesuit plunged into the fray, smashing a Guardsman under its foot.

Clakus raised his plasma gun and fired twice, striking the XV8 in the neck and chest. The battlesuit collapsed and exploded, sending pieces of burning armor careening off the walls. Before the Elysians could say anything, Chemosian was gone, searching for the warp-signature of his brothers with his finely tuned psychic senses. He opened up his vox-link.

"Fulgerion!" he shouted into the beads.

"Brother-Librarian, we need support now! Quelis and Sataran have been killed and there seems to be no end to the xenos! We only have a few platoons of Guard left here!"

"Understood!"

And so they came, past firefights and rushing guardsmen, to three halls away, where the Sternguard veterans of Fulgerion made their stand with the Second drop-company of the Elysian 23rd.

Coming up ahead to a nearby access hall that lead to a storage area, several Fire Warriors prepared, rushing past, time seemed to slow down as the two groups managed to run into each other as both turned a corner..

They both raised their weapons, but Chemosian was marginally faster, his arm shot out and a stream of warpfire engulfed the Fire Warriors, roasting them alive as the rest of Squad Parnus pumped bolter rounds into the xenos.

As the corpses fell to the floor, Parnus was already moving, with great strides Chemosian led them to a nearby storage room that he remembered from touring the building the previous night.

The storage room was almost thirty meters long and twenty meters wide. The marines of Fulgerion and a dozen Guardsmen stood behind several upturned crated, firing and ducking back at the swarming forms of Fire Warriors and Kroot emerging from a single storage door on the left side of the room, moving to the upturned tables and crates that littered the room.

Again a torrent of green flames issued out, not at the xenos that where taking up firing positions and whirling to meet the new attackers, but at the rear storage door,. Right where the Tau where flooding in.

A wall of green flames filled the narrow entrance, roasting several entering Kroot, roasting their screeching bodies. Around thirty Fire Warriors and Kroot remained, now exchanging fire with the new arrivals.

It was now more equal Parnus and Fulgerion closed in from two different directions, coming in hard and fast while the Guardsmen added their las-fire into, slaying the Fire Warriors and kroot.

One of Parnus took a las-round in the knee and a member of Fulgerion lost a hand, but they managed to clear out the fire warriors and Kroot, rapidly and quickly, closing before they managed to do too much.

At the same time they finished off the trapped warriors in the room, the green flames went out, instant Kroot leapt through the room, taking a member of Parnus to the ground and burying a blade into his throat.

Bolter rounds blew them to pieces as Sergeant Fulgerion picked off several frag grenades and hurled them with expert precision out of the room, so that they landed just as the Kroot and Tau began to enter.

The explosions was ear-splitting and various body parts blew back into the room as Sergeant Fulgerion's squad took up firing positions, at the narrow chokehold they could hold back much greater numbers of Kroot and Fire Warriors.

The Sergeant turned to look at Chemosian, a crack running down the side of his gold helmet. "My thanks, Brother-" he was then cut off by a loud noise, like a sharp rumble.

A spot in the wall towards the back crumbled and a monstrous beaked head pushed it's way through. It was a Knarloc, huge and roaring, sending bands of spittle flying everywhere.

Fulgerion barked a sharp command, and began to switch his bolter clip to Hellfire rounds to put down the beast while the rest of his squad began to fire at the beast along with Parnus.

"No! I'll handle it! Watch the door!" Chemosian shouted as the shapes of more Kroot began to appear in the doorway. Reluctantly, Fulgerion nodded and whirled around, commanding his squad to do so.

"Kill it! Parnus, Clakus, fire on target!" he commanded as the battle-brothers stepped up and aimed their plasma rifles at the Knarloc, which was forcing its way in with its great claws. The Guardsmen near it had a different reaction; some screamed in terror and turned in ran, while others raised their bullpup lasguns and opened fire at the beast, but it proved futile. The great beak of the Knarloc tore off the top half of a Guardsman with a sickening crunch, spraying blood into the air. Another shake of its head tossed the corpse's remains against the wall.

Then Clakus's plasma round struck the side of the beast's head, taking out its right eye and part of its jaw, along with a massive chunk of muscle on the side of its neck. Despite that horrific wound, it still continued to move. With a screech of pain it plunged into the crowd of soldiers, its great hind claws tearing apart more and more rubble around it to clear the way for the Kroot.

Chemosian dashed toward the Knarloc. The great beast noticed him and swiped a claw at him, but the Librarian ducked under the blow and brought his crackling force sword up, severing the claw at the forearm joint. Roaring with pain, the alien lunged forward as far as it could in the enclosed space, opening its jaws to tear off Chemosian's head with one swift move.

He was ready for it. Switching his grip on his sword, the Librarian thrust the sword right into the open, cauterized wound that took up half its skull. The blade rammed right though its head and into its brain socket, piecing the tiny organ. With a mental flex, Chemosian sent a pure current of warp energy through the blade, coating its metal surface with crackling emerald bolts. The warp energy coursed through the spine of the Knarloc and arced into its body, frying its spine and internal organs and killing it. The Librarian wrenched the blade free and stepped back.

"_Brother-Librarian! The Tau are approaching the medical center! We need your help immediately!"_ the hurried voice of one of Kommneus's Marines, Dalian, sounded over his vox-link.

The Eagle Claws where among those few chapters who specialized in Apothecaries. Ever since the near-annihilation of their chapter early on, they possessed more than any other chapter. Instead of the standard one per company, they often had multiple Apothecaries for each company to recover the gene-seeds and heal the wounded.

They had to be protected at all costs.

"Selis! Clakus! Cornan! Haas! Come with me! Now!" he barked, springing from the room.

* * *

**Eastern Refinery**

Heavy bolter fire cut down three Fire Warriors, the large shells cutting through their carapace armor with ease. Two more toppled dead from their firing positions as bolts tore into their heads and chests.

Vash'ka raced around the corner, moving as fast as he could with Shas'vre Ral'mae behind him. The Shas'el charged forward quickly, using the Fire Warriors as cover to close in with the Astartes. The heavy bolter moved to track him, but Vash'ka raised his plasma rifle and blew a large hole through the Marine's chest, flinging its body back against the wall.

His last Fire Warriors followed him in. Everyone else was spread out in the corridors, fighting with the Imperials in the confined rooms and hallways. The cries of battle echoed everywhere, but the Shas'el ignored them.

An Astartes fired his bolter at Vash'ka, blowing chunks of armor from his XV8. In retaliation, the Shas'el extended his retractable khophesh and beheaded the Marine, sending its helmet spiraling away with a trail of blood in its wake.

Vash'ka felt alive.

Another Marine ran at him with his chainsword, attacking his shoulder joint and trying to sever his weapon mount, but Vash'ka was ready. He lashed out with a kick, sending the purple-armored warrior crashing into a nearby wall. The Shas'vre fired off a shot from his plasma rifle and slew the wounded Astartes, piercing its chest. Nearby, Ral'mae finished off the last two Marines with his fusion blaster, melting their ceramite armor into a slurry of bubbling metal and seared flesh.

Then Vash'ka spotted the door. He could see something in there; the shapes of several bodies, lying on tables and covered with some sort of white sheets.

Was it some kind of morgue? He cautiously stepped into the room, keeping his armblade raised in case of an ambush.

Something roared across his arm and his burst cannon attachment fell away, hitting the ground with a clang. Warning signs flashed across his visor screen as Vash'ka turned and swung his khopesh, blocking a second strike from the chainsword and forcing him backward. A Marine wearing white armor instead of the usual purple stood in front of him, its eyes shining green behind its helmet.

_One of their medics,_ he realized.

Still, it did not make any difference. Vash'ka would kill him regardless of his rank or occupation.

He dove forward and met the Marine's attack head on, driving it back a few paces while he parried its blows with uncommon skill. Behind him, he registered Ral'mae's signature moving up to assist him.

"No! Stay back, Shas'vre! This one is mine!" he commanded fiercely, gritting his teeth as the roaring chainsword cut a ragged scratch in his khopesh's blade.

"Yes, El'Vash'ka!" Ral'mae responded, and stepped back.

Vash'ka returned to the fight. Despite his advantage in height, he was offset by the Marine's skill and the fact that he lacked one arm. So far, the combatants were rather equally matched. Then the medic brought his bolt pistol around and aimed for the cockpit. Vash'ka parried the blow and took the resulting chainsword thrust in the side plate of his armor. The teeth carved a deep trench in the side, but it wasn't enough to damage his XV8's interface.

Laughing madly, Vash'ka kicked the Marine back and aimed his plasma rifle, charging it up for a killing shot. Then a bolt round struck him in the side and exploded, sending his battlesuit stumbling off balance. Right next to him was a second Astartes, rising out of a white sheet and clutching a bolt pistol. Vash'ka quickly switched targets, pressing his plasma rifle into his foe's chest.

A stream of plasma exploded out of the Marine's back, leaving nothing but a plate-sized blackened hole in its torso. Instantly killed, the armored warrior collapsed backwards, hitting the floor with a deafening smash.

"Vre'Ral'mae, check the others!" Vash'ka turned back to the duel with the Apothecary, who was slowly rising from the floor. Suddenly, he heard a sizzling sound from behind him.

He whirled around, eyes widening in surprise as he took in the sight displayed on his XV8's visual sensors. A glowing green sword emerged from Ral'mae's cockpit area and then withdrew as the Shas'vre's suit tumbled to the ground, its pilot dead. Stepping over him was a Marine in purple and blue armor.

Chemosian glanced at Nikarnus's body on the ground, sprawled in a heap next to the makeshift surgery table, his face slack and his eyes rolled back, exposing the whites. Then he looked at Vash'ka, his face betraying nothing even as new and unfamiliar emotions coursed through him. He had lost battle-brothers before, but those had always been distant. The Librarian did not understand the feelings that pounded in his chest. His eyes began to shine green.

"You…did…this?" he asked, an almost unnoticeable tremor in his voice.

The Tau battlesuit seemed to cock its head at him in curiosity, then raised its plasma rifle. Energy flowed into its barrel from a pair of cables running down its arm, causing the weapon to glow blue.

Vash'ka had never met a psyker, much less killed one. It would be a new experience for him.

Three seconds of silence passed as Astartes and Tau stared at each other with hatred. Behind Vash'ka, the Apothecary Nerva hurried away to tend to a wounded Marine, unwilling to stay for the battle.

Both of the warriors attacked at the same time. Chemosian raised his hand as Vash'ka fired a searing blast of plasma toward him. With a crackle of emerald energy, the blue bolt hit something and dissipated with a loud sharp crack. It sounded similar to a personal shield, Vash'ka realized, but his sensors had detected nothing. Then he saw the shield of green fire that had suddenly appeared. Chemosian thrust his hand forward, and the shield changed into something new. The Librarian looked at Vash'ka, his eyes narrowing into glowing green slits.

"DIE!" he roared as the torrent shot forward, engulfing the Shas'el.

Green warpfire engulfed the battlesuit, burning armor and circuitry and frying his joints. In seconds, the metal inside the suit became a superheated, fiery prison, Vash'ka screamed, pitching forward and activating his thrusters. The flaming suit smashed through a rockcrete wall and burst outside into the hallways, blasting through door after door until it hit the last wall and soared off into the courtyard like a flaming green comet.

Vash'ka had never felt so much pain in his life, not even when he had been wounded in his Trial by Fire. His body burned with white-hot agony, engulfing him in a hellish inferno from which there was no escape. The battered suit finally flew over the shattered walls of the primary, disappearing into the distance.

Chemosian did not watch the Tau commander flee. He walked over to Nikarnus, his face unreadable, observing his body in a detached manner, his face betraying nothing about what he felt inside. He had never thought Nikarnus would leave him…his friend, who was so close they might as well have been family, who had then become his spiritual brother instead when they were both inducted into the Eagle Claws.

On his deepest personal level, Chemosian realized that he would never be able to talk to Nikarnus again, not be able to hear his tales, or his reassurances that he still thought Chemosian as a brother, despite his psyker gifts.

His higher functions informed him coldly that death was a natural part of war. His Astartes programming reinforced that, wiping away all doubts about the death of his brothers and failure.

But he could not wipe out the feeling of deep, soul-crushing sorrow.

"Brother-Librarian?" The marines of Squad Parnus arrived behind him, staring at the dead body of the former sergeant. Clakus placed a hand on Chemosian's shoulder, silently consoling him. Meanwhile, Nerva had finished checking on the wounded.

"_Leave this place,"_ Chemosian growled, his voice suddenly deep and ethereal. _"Guard the Apothecary. Retrieve the holy geneseed. Do not follow."_ He turned and walked toward the hallway, green energy arcing over his armor.

"Where are you going?" Clakus called after him as his squad took up a defensive position.

Chemosian did not answer.

* * *

**The access hallways.**

Shas'el Myo'li's troops moved through the breach in the access hall, over four hundred of them. Fire Warriors, battlesuits, Kroot, and Vespids all moved in, sending the Guard and Marines into a full retreat. At first they could only come through a small opening, but then two more appeared, created by multiple fusion blasters from Myo'li's battlesuits and allowing more Tau to come in.

Kroot warriors spearheaded the attack, followed by select teams of Fire Warriors who moved in and out to the sides of the hall, pouring in more and more pulse fire to support their allies. Two-dozen Space Marines and over a hundred Guardsmen had fallen so far, forced back to the ends of the hallways. Pulse rounds dueled with bolter shells and las-fire.

The Imperials were losing, being slowly pushed back by the relentless Tau firepower and the ferocity of the xenos's allies.

Chemosian ran through the nearby entrance room to the access hallway. An Astartes scout rushed by with several fresh bolter clips from a storage room, his face a mask of blood.

"_Where is Kommneus?"_ roared the Librarian.

"Over there!" the scout replied shakily. "Sergeant Belsarius sent me back for more ammo!" Chemosian narrowed his eyes and stepped forward into the access hallway.

Through three great holes he could see dozens upon dozens of Kroot warriors forcing their way through, charging into the Marines and Guardsmen taking cover behind crude containers at the opposite ends of the hallway.

Bolter rounds smacked into xenos flesh and tore the Kroot apart rank-by-rank, while a storm of las-fire and heavy weapon shots from the Guard ripped swathes through the Carnivores. Even with their celerity and leaping abilities, the beaked xenos could simply not stand up to that kind of firepower, but Chemosian could see several dozen Fire Warriors emerging, along with the shapes of XV8 battlesuits. Now volleys of pulse rifle fire were being added to the assaults of the Kroot, as well as small groups of Vespid Stingwings that were beginning to arrive.

The whole thing resembled some sort of freakish, twisted rainbow, with the bright blue of the pulse rifles mixing in with the crimson of the las-fire and the orange rush of flamers.

None of it really mattered to Chemosian anymore. The death of Nikarnus had awakened something in him, something that he could not describe. He walked forward, his body covered in a green aura of warpfire that shrouded and cloaked him from head to toe, blotting out his blue and purple power armor.

Librarians in the Adeptus Astartes constantly walked a tightrope between life and damnation. This lesson was hammered into their minds at every opportunity. Chemosian had done it to the younger Lexicanum enough times.

No psyker was created equal. Some were more powerful than others, some had less power but better control, others had different power that affected offense and defense, and others affected the elements.

Within the Librarium, each initiate was tested by their masters and then taught to established a set of mental blocks, in order to ease the amount of power being used. Even the use of a small amount of warp energy carried a small risk. The greater the power used, the more the risk. The most powerful Librarians, Chemosian knew, could wield great amounts of power, but only at great concentration.

If a Librarian lost that concentration and discipline, it would be possible for a daemon to manifest or to possess the psyker, damning his soul forever.

Control and precision was the motto of the Librarium.

Chemosian undid all those blocks.

A sudden surge of power rushed through his very being. Thrusting his hands forward, he launched a massive hurricane of green fire right into the path of the invading xenos.

This was nothing compared to Chemosian's earlier blasts; it was more like a gale force storm than anything else. The front swarms of Kroot and Fire Warriors were caught by the sheer amount of flame, set alight instantly. Traveling onward, the wave of warpfire incinerated everything in its path, Kroot, Fire Warriors, Vespids, Crisis suits, and Guardsmen, all consumed by the flames.

Outside, a massive pillar of green fire burst out in a torrent from each of the three openings, roasting several dozen Fire Warriors standing outside. Inside, the rockcrete melted and the support pillars warped from the sheer heat of the flames. The Guardsmen standing nearby Chemosian screamed as their flesh was burnt and blackened. The armor of the surviving Eagle Claws was merely scorched, as if by a flamer, but even so, the heat was unbearable.

In moments, Shas'el Myo'li's three hundred strong attack force was virtually annihilated, the remainder fleeing desperately toward friendly lines.

Chemosian fell face first into the ground, motionless, blood streaming from his eyes, nose and ears.

Inside his mind, the Warp opened its arms wide to receive him.

Inside the eastern refinery

Par'von moved through the hallway with several Fire Warriors trailing behind him, slowly pressing forward through the Imperial defenses. He entered a room containing over two dozen sleeping bunks, which had been used by the garrison.

The Shas'el glanced around. Whoever had slept here had been officers, as evidenced by the rich blankets and murals, or at least what was left of them. Loric's Guardsmen had been thorough in their ransacking. Bits of bedsheets and various kits and medals were strewn across the floor, where they had been torn from their cases.

_A poor sight,_ Par'von thought distastefully as he activated his battlesuit's sensors.

A Guardsman with a plasma gun opened fire, sending a blue-white sphere of energy straight towards him. The blast missed him by inches. The Guardsmen had pulled the trigger too soon. Par'von rewarded his impatience with a burst from his flamer, incinerating several of the humans in the wave of fire.

More Guardsmen were emerging, opening fire at the Tau. A Fire Warrior went down with a las-round in his helmet lens. Two more fell dead, their armor pierced. Par'von whirled around and engaged the emerging soldiers with his flamer as the Fire Warrior team moved into position and fired, their pulse rounds cutting down Guardsmen left and right, punching through their flak armor.

There were at least two-dozen of them, but Par'von's suit was made sturdily, and his flamer and plasma rifle were more than up to the task. Even as las-fire chopped down his Fire Warriors down to two, he sent the last of the Guardsmen fleeing.

Then a loud bang sounded as a Shas'la's upper body blew apart, a shotgun round striking him in the chest and blowing out his back, his carapace armor unable to withstand a high-powered round at point blank range. The last Fire Warrior had barely finished whirling around as a power fist crushed his skull in a single blow. Par'von spotted the attacker, a half-mechanized _gue'la_ holding a shotgun in its real hand.

Loric moved, pumping his shotgun and pointing it at Par'von. He fired off another burst of shells, which deflected uselessly off the battlesuit's armor. Par'von swung his flamer up to fire, but before he could, Loric darted forward and grappled at the flamer arm with his own bionic fist. For a moment they struggled, then Par'von's limb was torn clean away. Loric hurled the flamer over a dozen feet away, watching as streaks of fire spilled out of the barrel.

That was impossible, Par'von thought. No _gue'la_ could be that strong. He tried to maneuver out of the room. but the Elysian colonel had blocked the entrance. With no way out, Par'von charged. He swung his plasma rifle and feinted, lashing his Crisis suit's leg at the colonel. But Loric had already seen through the attack. Dodging the aim of the plasma rifle, he moved to the side and grabbed the XV8's leg with one arm. Gritting his teeth, he gave a mighty heave and ripped the entire thing off.

The Shas'el fell, his plasma rifle firing into the ceiling and blowing away a large chunk. Dodging the falling piece of rubble, Loric landed on the crippled battlesuit, batting away the plasma rifle at it rose toward him. He pulled out his plasma pistol, pressed it at the cockpit, and fired, ripping a large hole through the suit and killing Par'von in a single shot. With a shudder, the suit's sensors dimmed as its pilot died.

Panting, Loric leapt off the battlesuit and holstered his shotgun. He spat on the floor and eyed the rapidly spreading flames and the Guardsmen who were retreating from the fires. He eyed the room. It was about to become an inferno, but most likely it would not spread very far due to the refinery's mostly rockcrete structure. At least it would slow down the Tau.

"What should we do, sir?" a large, unshaven trooper asked him, emerging gingerly from the upturned bedposts. Loric gazed at the flames for several moments, then turned toward the man.

"Get a move on! Let the bluies burn!"

Outside

Shas'el Myo'li was glad she had stayed behind to coordinate the action. The fires were dying down now, but dozens of Tau soldiers had been consumed in the blast. Par'von's signal had suddenly grown very erratic, and she couldn't tell whether he had been injured, had ejected, or worse.

"What was that?" one of her Shas'vres yelled in shock.

"I-I don't know!" Myo'li stuttered. Something flashed across her information screen as her command link with Shas'el Par'von was cut off, and the bright blue character that represented him on the data screen went red. She cursed in Tau. "He's dead. Par'von's dead."

"You're in command now, Shas'el," another XV8 pilot sighed.

"Very well then," she said slowly, fully grasping the responsibility thrust upon her as she spotted the surviving Fire Warriors fleeing from the Eastern Refinery. It took several minutes for her to reorganize the cadres into attack teams and formulate a new plan to sweep up through the eastern refinery and annihilate the Imperials.

Even with their massive losses, the Tau still outnumbered the enemy. Observer drones fed information into Myo'li's tactical interface, showing that the regular _gue'la_ were utterly decimated and the Marines were in bad shape to. Most of the defenses were swept away, or stretched to the breaking point. Form her own experience they new that they wound not be able to survive a second attack, even with her reduced numbers.

Victory was so close for the Tau. Bloodied and battered as they were, they still had enough strength to overpower the Imperials. They could feel it; one more push would break the heavily weakened and disorganized defenders.

They never got the chance.

A warning icon flashed in Myo'li's interface as her Tetra pickets surrounding the Primary were blown to bits by a wave of Imperial tanks emerging from the road. The Shas'el frantically issued orders to stop the attacking Imperials, but it was no use. She had virtually no reserves left, and everything had been expended in the attack on the Primary.

Rising over the walls came the Assault Marines of the Second Company. As the sounds of lascannon fire and missiles echoed across the refinery, More and more purple and grey vehicles rumbled through the breaches.

Basiclus's relief force had arrived.

Over two hundred Space Marines and over a thousand Guardsmen came, dismounting and launching an immediate attack on the battered and disoriented Tau who were still in attack formations.

They could not lose.

The Tau were stretched almost to the breaking point. The sight of so many fresh _gue'la_ troops simply broke the morale of many of them, causing them to panic and retreat. Others, under Myo'li's direct command, fled in an orderly fashion. The Shas'el realized that further resistance was utterly futile in the face of such numbers, and even in the distance, the shapes of the Titans emerged. The Tau fled, leaving their dead to be burned by the victory pyres of the Eagle Claws.

Barely fifty Marines were ready for combat duty, such was the toll that had been inflicted upon the garrison.

Claudius and Idaeon went to work with Nerva and Domitian, harvested the gene-seeds of the fallen and calling in a Thunderhawk to evacuate the wounded. The dying body of Nikarnus was found and put inside a stasis field, to be transported to the _Sword of the Emperor_. He was alive, but already dying. The only way for him to live would be in the body of a Dreadnought as an ancient alongside Lakaris. Over two-dozen Marines were not so lucky.

The Guard had taken truly massive casualties, with the Elysians losing over two-thirds of their regiment. Despite their losses they where unusually jubilant, for they had avenged the 23rd on Taros.

Nobody bothered to count the xenos dead.

The Malnians and Eagle Claws came to garrison the Primary, as six regiments came in from Healy's armored reserve force, through the hole in the Tau defensive groups that was caused by the bloody meat grinder battle at the Primary. The scratch force of human auxiliaries that the Tau left at Minrois either surrendered at the sight of the Imperial Titans or fled without a word into the ash wastes. The prisoners where marched off to the penal labor camps. Most would not survive the tortuous labor that was to follow.

Such was Imperial justice.

With news of the defeat at Traknor, Shas'o O'res Kais withdrew his cadres as the mechanized Guard regiments began their swing northwards, around the Newark forests, and straight to Karovioa Primaris, or as the Tau called it, Kro'vas.

* * *

**The ash waste outside Traknor Primary-three hours after the arrival of Basiclus's relief group**

Shadoweye crossed the ash waste, shrouded in camo-cloaks, their armor painted to match the sand beneath them perfectly as Keth'o'res crossed the area around the Traknor. His team had just arrived from the mountains on their Devilfish, arriving shortly after the Tau had withdrawn most of their forces, Keth'o'res had stayed behind to monitor the Imperials and rescue any stragglers.

So far, it did not look like there were any. The Pathfinder glanced around, observing the shattered walls of the Traknor Primary. It would be a while before the _gue'la_ would get the walls online, but it would take a day at least for them to do it. But by the time the Tau arrived, the Imperials would have done it anyway. He could see a counter-attack would be fruitless, most likely it would have been reinforced anyway.

He shook his head. "Disgraceful."

Gar'los looked at him. "Shas'ui?"

"It's…nothing," Keth'o'res replied. On some level, he still could not believe the _gue'la_ had succeeded. From what he had gathered, the battle had been incredibly close, and had the relief convoy been delayed for another hour, the Tau would have been able to win.

_Nothing in life is fair_. His father had said that to him, right before he departed for war and died, shortly after fighting the Orks. They were the truest words he had ever heard.

"Right," he muttered, turning around. "There's nothing for us here."

"Shas'ui! Look!"

Keth'ores whirled back as Pae'vis shouted, and saw what the Pathfinder had noticed. Sitting only a few hundred feet from the Traknor, and behind a large rocky outcropping, was the shattered carcass of an XV8. Next to it was a escape pod, one of the latest add-ons recently developed by the Earth caste.

Something lay next to it. As he got closer he saw it was a Tau shape, sitting sideways in the ash waste. The whole scene looked faintly ridiculous to him, the XV8 spitting forth the escape pod and the pod forth the pilot.

He brushed those thoughts away quickly as he and Pae'vis skidded down into the depression, kicking up small puffs of ash as they steadied themselves at the bottom. The body was lying sideways out of the cockpit, he could not see the face, but the pilot's uniform was burnt to a crisp, along with its skin. The pilot's topknot was gone and his arms were crossed over his face as he slumped forward, motionless.

He looked dead, Keth'o'res sighed and nudged the body. It did not move. Pae'vis moved an arm out of the way to look at the facial features of the pilot, but they could not recognize the face behind the mass of burns.

"It seem he's dea-" Pae'vis was cut off as the blackened arm shot forward, grabbing him by the throat. Keth'o'res leapt back in surprise, his fingers instinctively closing around the handle of his pulse pistol. The fallen Tau scraped its burned nails across the Pathfinder's chestplate.

"_No,"_ it hissed through charred lips, blood and saliva dripping from between its teeth. _"Not…yet."_


	7. Fall into the Flames

(Author's Note here –This is the latest chapter of Claws's Glory. It's short compared to the others, but it will lead to the much larger Chapter 8. Once again TheLoneHunter has proved to be gracious enough to help me write the first section with Vash'ka and edit to him. Many thanks to him.)

**(Fall into the Flames)**

**Guest Editor/Writer: TheLoneHunter**

* * *

**Kro'vas spaceport**

"_Load it up as soon as you can. The Shas'o wants him put on the next outbound flight."_

"_I'll see to it. Thank you, Shas'vre, we'll take it from here."_

Inside his transparent prison, Vash'ka writhed in silent agony, lashing out at the glass around him. He was helpless, held in place while the Earth caste medical team pushed the hovering medical capsule toward a waiting Manta. Fire burned within his veins, a seething inferno of rage that threatened to engulf him entirely if he let it overcome him.

He felt nothing but anger, anger toward the Space Marines who had done this to him, toward the Imperium, toward humanity itself. They had singed his flesh to ashes, burnt away his very soul. Nothing in his life had ever driven Vash'ka to feel as much hatred as he was feeling now.

"_Transport inbound! Clear the landing zone! Clear the landing zone!"_

A rumbling noise blasted through the capsule as something huge touched down. Though he couldn't see anything through the burned remnants of his eyelids, the Shas'el could recognize the roar of a Manta destroyer anywhere. He was being shipped offworld!

"NO!" he tried to shout, but only a croaking snarl escaped his lips. "NO! LET ME FIGHT! LET ME FIGHT!"

"_Sedate him!" _a medic's voice yelled. _"More serum, Fio'la!"_

A cold tingling raced through his arm, and Vash'ka drifted into a fitful sleep. Gradually, dreams began to enter his fevered mind…dreams of battles he had fought long ago.

**Six years ago, during the Sohren-Kuvasa War Sohren Secundus, Port Harbinger, docks district**

The spaceport was ablaze with a hundred burning vessels, casting an eerie orange glow across the Tau battlesuits and Fire Warriors that were carving their way through enemy territory. Surrounded by fire and enemies on all sides, the remaining Guardsmen fought on in desperation, knowing full well that only death awaited them, no matter where they ran. Thousands of corpses blanketed the ground; Tau, Guardsmen, and civilians who had been killed in the massive firefight. The fury of the _Is'shael Uash'o_ fell upon all Imperials who refused to surrender, delivered swiftly by the Tau and Vespid forces who were laying waste to the docks.

Thus far, the Siege of Port Harbinger, as it would later be known, was not so much a siege as it was a slaughter.

Vash'ka and the other four pilots that made up his team strode unhindered through the inferno, their armored XV8 Crisis suits protecting them from the heat. Flames licked hungrily at the Shas'ui's legs, but the most damage it could do was to singe the battlesuit's paint. Chuckling to himself, Vash'ka raised the flamer on his arm and fired, spraying a sheet of burning chemicals across a stack of wooden beams.

This was his third Trial by Fire, and he had no intention of letting all the experience he'd received during his eight years of combat service go to waste.

The five battlesuits were currently fighting their way through a large warehouse south of the main landing field, backed up by a dozen Fire Warrior teams. Trapped inside, the Imperials were utilizing hit-and-run tactics, launching attacks from around every corner of the building. To counter their advantage, Shas'el K'yos had ordered all XV8 ground teams to torch everything that the _gue'la _could potentially use as cover.

"_Stay close, Ui'Vash'ka,"_ growled Shas'vre Nev'ren as he advanced cautiously, holding his flamer at the ready. _"Shas'ui Tyr, Shas'ui Ka'o'ran, advance your fire teams along the western wall. Watch for movement."_

"_Contact!" _another pilot yelled. Vash'ka turned around just in time to see a pair of Guardsmen fall dead, their bodies ripped open by burstcannon fire. Another Imperial dashed for cover, but a searing blast from Nev'ren's plasma rifle incinerated the man before he had run five meters.

"_Advance!" _the Shas'vre commanded, waving the smoking weapon toward the wall in front of him._ "Vash'ka, Kais, move up! Keth'ran, Mont'yr, you stay here and…"_

Out of nowhere, an Imperial Lightning craft plunged through the warehouse roof and smashed into a pair of support beams, sending pieces of burning metal flying across the building. Launched through the air by the force of impact, the aircraft's cockpit spiraled down and exploded in the middle of the battling Tau and Imperials, killing at least a dozen soldiers in the blast. The Crisis suits were unharmed, but the battle had now shifted in favor of the Guard.

Nev'ren swore as a salvo of las-fire ripped through one of the wounded Fire Warriors in front of him, sending the Shas'la reeling back against the wall in its death throes. The Imperials had taken advantage of the distraction to redouble their assault. Through the smoke and heat haze, Vash'ka could see more Guardsmen moving forward to attack, finishing off the Fire Warriors who had been injured in the crash.

"_Suppression fire!"_ yelled Keth'ran as crimson las-rounds began rebounding off her XV8's armored surface. _"Vash'ka, Mont'yr, burn them!"_

A stream of blue liquid burst forth from the barrel of Vash'ka's flamer and ignited in a sheet of yellow-white fire that swept across the Imperials, engulfing them in a hellish inferno. Screams of pain and agony filled the air, but the Shas'ui felt no pity for the _gue'la_.

They had brought this upon themselves by refusing the _Tau'va_.

Without warning, Mont'yr's battlesuit exploded as a sizzling melta blast pierced its chassis, killing the pilot instantly. Yelling in rage, Vash'ka swung the burstcannon on his right arm around and opened fire, shredding the Imperial's body into a cloud of red mist.

Ten seconds passed as the other Crisis suits searched the surrounding area for other hidden Guardsmen.

"_Nev'ren to El'K'yos, we're down one XV8,"_ Nev'ren spat into his battlesuit's comlink. _"The warehouse is nearly secure. Requesting tactical update."_

"_Good work, Shas'vre,"_ K'yos's voice replied. _"We've pushed far into the southern district, along with El'Shi'vior's troops. Torch that building and rejoin the rest of your cadre."_

"_Yes, Shas'el."_ Nev'ren turned to the three Shas'uis. _"You heard him. Burn this place to the ground."_

Vash'ka smiled. That was exactly what he wanted to hear.

* * *

**(Karovioa-Present Day)**

When Lord General Healy's 344th army pushed out from Gerlaf Station at the start of the conflict on Karovioa, they did so in much strength. Ten Titans and over two hundred thousand Guardsmen marched across the main continent of Karovioa. The Tau, by contrast, were heavily outnumbered. With just under forty thousand Fire Warriors, an unknown number of Kroot mercenaries, and fifty thousand human auxiliaries, they where in a very bad position.

Or so it seemed. The Tau, learning from the conflict on Taros, withdrew before the main Imperial juggernaut, launching raids and rapid strikes to take out isolated elements of Healy's army, redeploying and vanishing before the main force could hit them with the entire army.

However, they did not succeed entirely. Healy's force was too large and his soldiers too numerous to be properly tackled by such a small force. There were simply too many Guardsmen coming in too many places. Furthermore, Healy responded well, forming flight groups of Valkyries from the Elysian, Harakoni, and Jipponese regiments into specialist task groups with the rapid mechanized elements into special, inter-regiment task forces to counter the Tau mobility.

While the Imperials could never fully match up to the Tau in a game mobility, the task forces, working together and with Healy's scouts, managed to inflict quite a decent number of casualties on the Tau.

Communications were another problem on Karovioa. Before the invasion, the Tau had littered the atmosphere with disruption pods and drones designed to make orbital scans impossible. It was only after the introduction of specially modified servo-skulls by the Adeptus Mechanicus that the Imperial forces were able to establish a clear view of the situation on Karovioa.

Still, the Imperials often had to rely on the skills of the human eye. Fortunately, Healy had the skills of several elite scout regiments, The 10th Scoros Scout regiment and the 32nd Catachan proved to be the most valuable out of all of the 344th army's groups.

The Tau camp near Dalu had been discovered by the brave souls of the Scoros veterans. Sneaking behind enemy lines in their camo-smocks, crawling through dust and brush, they had located the site and reported it in.

Much of the war was slow and bloody, even with the Imperial numbers and their ground and air coordination. The Tau, who played a brilliant game of maneuvers and hit-and-run warfare, ultimately ran out of space. Even after they evacuated their cities and turned them into giant Kauyon traps to exhaust Imperial forces, they still eventually fell back before the sheer momentum of Healy's attack.

However, the Guard's advance had been halted at the edge of the Traknor wastes, a vast desert that concealed Kro'vas, the Tau's capital city. The great terraced city was perched upon a series of rocky ridges and a long, low desert plateau. Surrounding it to the north were great twisting valleys and canyons, while to the west lay a vast desert.

The city had first been founded when a group of colonists had crash landed on Karovioa many millennia ago. Even after they moved out to the rest of Karovioa's more temperate landscape, Karovioa Primaris had remained a chief city because of the great amounts of ore underneath the desert.

The Tau naturally chose Kro'vas as their new living space when they arrived at Karovioa and conquered the planet, incorporating their architecture and seat of government right into the old Imperial foundations. When war reached the Traknor desert, Shas'O O'res Kais had been able to halt the Imperials by dividing his army into a dozen task forces, each assigned an area of the desert to hold. This "defense in depth" strategy had enabled him to annihilate Healy's latest offensive, forcing him to throw all of the Eagle Claws into the battle to aid the Imperial assault on Traknor.

Because of that battle, and the decimation of Par'von's cadres had left a huge hole in the Tau line, Healy had already sent in six armored regiments with more behind. That force quickly secured the Korth astronomical facility, thirty miles beyond Traknor. From there, Healy landed his 33rd corps from orbit, in great mass landers, they descended by the dozen, disgorging their Guardsmen into the hot sands below, tens of thousands of men and vehicles.

With Healy also launching an all or nothing offensive in the Newark forests, O'res Kais was forced to pull back, unable to deploy enough forces in time to properly defend the capital at all.

And so here it was. The Imperial Guard menaced Kro'vas with all its Tau defenders and the various civilians, human and xenos alike, holed up in the vast desert city, waiting in fear and anticipation for the coming battle. Normally, like they had in the past, the Tau would withdraw and evacuate the civilian population, before turning each city into a giant Kauyon trap for the Imperials, making progress there slow and bloody, with a minimum of progress for the enemy.

But that could not be done here. Here there was nowhere to transport the Tau civilians, much less the human civilians. The Tau fleet in space had risked a close-fought battle and destruction just to slip in a few escorts to evacuate some of the wounded.

So thus, Shas'o Or'es Kais had little choice but to fight for the city, and set up as much of his Kauyon traps as he could in the deserts and canyons outside the sprawling capital city of the Tau.

* * *

_**Sword of the Emperor **_**- Apothecarion**

Basiclus walked down the hallways in full armor. Behind him, a robed serf held his helmet with both hands, while another held his sword and pistol for him. Two of his command veterans proceeded behind him.

He walked down the winding marble and steel halls of the _Sword_, past the engraved icons of the Eagle's wing, busts of Chapter heroes, and engraved sections of the Codex Astartes carved into the walls. He stopped at a four-meter door covered by a giant pair of skull-embossed blast doors, carved with the icon of the Apothecarion and guarded by two giant servitors, their arms bristling with weaponry.

Rapidly their augers scanned him and they gave a series of beeps. Withdrawing from their guard positions, the doors opened, letting him and his escort into the Eagle Claws's most revered sanctum.

The Apothecarion was grey and white, with icons of the Chapter and the Imperium covering the walls. At the far end of the massive, fifty-meter long room was a statue of the First Apothecary of the Eagle Claws.

The place was covered in all sorts of medical beds, stasis coffins, and other healing equipment that would turn any Imperial medicae green with envy. Claudius, Nerva, Ideaon and Domitian were all hard at work, saving lives. The corpses of Marines who had yet to have their geneseed harvested were floating in stasis tanks, their twisted and broken bodies frozen in time. Other living Astartes were seated on medical platforms.

Claudius himself was involved with patching a massive hole in the side of a battle-brother, while countless medical servitors surrounded him, helping him remove bits of shrapnel. One of them was standing by, holding a new kidney transplant.

Basiclus ignored that and walked over to Kommneus, who was lying in a medical bed, dressed in a simple gown and plugged into the healing bed, a platform which would send coagulant and healing drugs into his system.

The captain looked up.

"You…have the nerve…to come here…after Traknor," he hissed in contempt.

Basiclus looked him in the eye. "What?"

"You know full well what you did, Brother! You sent me and the Fifth into a battle which was suicide! We were alone and cut off, we did not have the element of surprise, nor the benefit of the offensive!" snarled Kommneus.

Basiclus knew he was right. The Astartes excelled in the lightning fast surgical strike, the hard, cold offensive that tore the enemy's heart out from its body. Not the slow, meat grinder battle that took place at Traknor.

"You are misunderstood, Brother." Basiclus knelt beside him. "It was the only way. Had I had the option of a surgical raid to annihilate the place, I would have done it gladly, but it needed to be taken."

"Then you should have let the Guard do it!"

"We saw how well they did on Taros. Our brothers from the Raptors chapters had only enough numbers to be deployed in a rescue role, not to reinforce the Elysians," Basiclus explained.

"Healy can sent more! We do not go on suicide missions for him!" Kommneus replied.

Basiclus sighed and stood up. "I think you are confused," he said finally.

"Confused! It's clear to me more than ever!"

"What I did was nothing of that," said Basiclus. "This war on Karovioa has gone far enough. Healy is already far, far behind schedule. I myself believe his methods are the best way to defeat the Tau, but his superiors at the Crusade Army Group command do not see that. They are impatient, and do not understand the situation on Karovioa fully. Ordering to move ahead of his own plans would result in defeat for the Crusade."

"We serve humanity," he continued, "Not the other way around. I am a Captain of the Adeptus Astartes. I am a mighty warrior and leader, but I cannot command the Army Crusade Command. No Marine has, not since the days of the Great Heresy. This war needs to be finished, the cost in blood in high for the Guard. If I must sacrifice my brothers to ensure victory and convince the command to keep Healy and the few who understand the tactics of the Tau in command, then I will. I sent your men in there because I trusted them!"

Basiclus leaned in. "I shall take my own company and decapitate the Tau command structure, but this will not be a meat grinder fight. I will strike down their forces, then kill their Shas'o," he pronounced the word awkwardly, "and their Ethereal."

Kommneus stared at him, his brown eyes flashing.

"Well then," he began. "If that is what you are set out to do, then I cannot stop you as I am." he glanced at his body. "However, I _have_ used my authority as a Captain to send an Astropathic message to the Chapter-master to come here and end this farce, to investigate you and annihilate the Tau once and for all on this dustball!" Kommneus explained.

"I see," Basiclus muttered. "Then for your sake, I hope you savor what glory you can, should you succeed, for the rest of our Brotherhood will judge you then."

* * *

**Unknown location**

_Who am I?_

He stood, naked and dirty on the ground. He looked up in awe, and from as high as he could see was a dormant volcano. This time, it would not spew its death into the ground and force the Hyorites to flee in fear.

He blinked. Where had he heard that word? Hyorites? He did not know. It seemed so familiar, so fleeting, but he could barely remember it. He stumbled about, looking for some sign of civilization.

He stared at himself, caked in ash and dirt, his feet ragged and bleeding from walking on chips of obsidian and sharp pebbles. His breath came in quick, harsh gasps through the smoke-shrouded air.

He was a young boy, thin and whipcord-lean, almost like a starving firecat. He wondered what that was, and an image of a great crimson-furred beast came to mind.

Something shifted. Watching in amazement, the boy looked on as a large shape rose from the ground in front of him, casting off the dirt and ash like a great beast rising from the ocean. It was at least ten feet tall, massively muscled, its hands ending in great, twisted talons. It was skinless, the gleaming red of its muscles smeared with dirt and filth. Its face was a multi-eyed nightmare.

It grinned at him, revealing row upon row of needlelike incisors. It lunged, a small grunt-like squeak issuing from it's throat, something so innocuous sounding from such a large beast. The boy watched in terror as it moved closer.

Then without thinking, a length of flame pierced the beast through its chest. It stopped, a foot away from the boy, a lance of green fire lodged through its heart. The boy looked on in shock as something extended from his hand, like a sword or spear, and impaled the monster. With a ghastly roar, the thing disappeared, slain by whatever the boy held. He looked on in shock at the long lance of green held in his pale, ash-caked hand.

It was made of fire, he realized, but it did not hurt him. He felt no heat, no pain. It felt perfectly cool and relaxing just holding it in his hands. It was almost two meters long, and its edges shifted and blurred to the point where he could not tell if he held a sword or spear.

"_Zalk!"_ a voice called behind him. A red-headed woman in a white dress walked delicately over the rocks. Her arms where covered in burn scars, but her face was clear and pretty.

"_Zalk,"_ she cooed, holding her arms out. Images flashed in the boy's mind.

"_Mother,"_ he whispered, looking at the ethereal figure in front of him.

As she neared, she changed, her blue eyes becoming large and saucerlike, needle teeth appearing, her dress falling away to reveal a twisted body, and her nails turning to claws. She smiled at him and lunged for his throat at blinding speed.

Suddenly, she was stopped as a large staff exploded from her chest. A purple and blue figure materialized behind her, carrying a huge golden halberd, She writhed in shrieking pain upon the staff, then in a burst of blue energy, she disappeared.

The boy looked up in awe. The figure was massive compared to the stick-lean boy on the ground. Huge and standing over two and a half meters tall, it was clad in purple and blue power armor. A winged eagle's claw was prominent on one shoulder guard.

A face, male, craggy and battle worn, covered in scars and with graying hair looked at him. Fearsome looking flinty eyes started at him, grotesque looking plugs where joined into his skull and temples.

Zalk looked up in shock. That man had just killed his mother! But his mother had been dead for almost two centuries, he remembered. He felt a headache coming on.

"_Brother Chemosian, you must come back,"_ he rumbled. Zalk looked up at him in fear.

"_W-what?" _he asked, eyes wide.

"_You must come back, Brother."_ The warrior gestured around. _"None of this is real. These are all your memories. Nothing is real here; these are just specters. Return to us. Regain yourself."_

"_What are you? Are you a Space Marine?"_ Zalk asked. _"W-who I am? I've never seen you before!"_

The giant looked at him. _"I am your brother in ways you cannot even imagine. Your mind is confused and lost. I will get you back, Chemosian. I promise I will get you bac-" _He was cut off as dozens of shapes appeared. There were more monsters now, all different. Some were blood-smeared knights, others where walking, decaying corpses with great fangs, others where naked hags covered in tentacles, and many more horrifying things.

"_Those daemons-"_ the huge man began. Then his arms exploded, turning to dust that floated away. He glanced at it. _"I see my time here draws short. I will not be able to communicate much longer." _He turned to Zalk. _"Fight! Fight and kill! If you die here, then you lose your soul and your brothers. Whatever you do, Brother, don't di-"_ He was cut off as finally he disappeared in a shower of dust.

Fear creeping up in his spine, Zalk felt a shield of green flame appear in his hand along with his sword as the monsters closed in. Who was that man? And why was he here, for that matter?

* * *

**A half hour later**

After leaving his talks with Kommneus, Basiclus quickly sought out Claudius, who, after he had finished with the operation, had led him to a private wing of the Apothecarion where Chemosian was being held.

Demertius stood over him, hands on his forehead. The wounded Librarian was laying on a sigil-encrusted medical bed, covered in purity seals. Two gun servitors stood nearby, armed with blessed flamers.

"Physically he is fine, but his mind is another matter entirely," Claudius stated. "Brother-Librarian, can you explain better?"

Demertius opened his eyes and turned around. "Yes."

"How is he?" Basiclus asked.

Demertius sighed. "Not good, putting aside the fact that he broke every law the Librarium has. Now he sleeps in a psychic coma, essentially trapped in his own mind. The damage he has done has reverted him back to before he became an Astartes."

"What do you mean?" replied Basiclus, confused.

"He was a boy when I ventured in, a boy under attack by ravenous daemons who flock to feast on his soul. He fights with sword and shield, but those terms are just metaphors for the mental battle of wills," Demertius explained. "Right now, if he triumphs in his mind, he will be free. The problem is that I don't know how long it will take. It might be a few minutes, a few days, or a few centuries."

"And if he dies in his mind?" asked Basiclus, although he felt he already had an idea of the answer.

"Then his soul will be devoured, he will die and his body will be a puppet for the use of the daemons. Not for long, though," he muttered.

"I see," Basiclus said, deep in thought. This was bad. He had known Chemosian as one of his most valued brothers. Basiclus appreciated his insight and service to the Second Company, and if he died, that would be missed. But something still nagged him.

"You said he reverted back to when he was a child, correct?" he asked.

Demertius nodded.

"Why did he do that?"

The Librarian's face creased in thought.

"My theory," he said after much deliberation, "is that with the death of Nikarnus, his old brother back when they where inducted, he reverted back to when Nikarnus was alive, or he reverted too hard and went back to his childhood."

Basiclus was confused. He could make little sense of that kind of explanation, but from what he knew of Chemosian, he did not see him as an emotional Marine, even by the standards of the Astartes.

"I apologize, Brother," he continued. "I do not pretend to understand the exact details, but you will have to stay here and guide him as much as you can. While we could use your presence on Karovioa, we cannot risk the loss of Chemosian."

"I do not mean to sound heartless, my lord, but would not letting our brother die greatly improve your chances or victory? I heard your speech to Kommneus about sacrificing lives to the Emperor."

Basiclus whirled around to face him, his eyes blazing. "Being devoured by daemons is no way for a warrior to die! I will not willingly condemn him to death for some backup at Karovioa Primaris! It may be hypocritical, but I don't care at all. I have known Chemosian far too long and trust him far too much to let him die like this. If I did this then I would never be able to forgive myself. I would rather die then lose my self-respect by letting him die without honor, Demertius!" he shouted. "Do you understand?"

"Yes, my lord."

* * *

**Kro'vas spaceport**

Kir'cea watched Vash'ka being transported away in his hover capsule. Through the glass, she saw the rising and falling of his blackened chest with each ragged gasp he took through the breath-mask fastened to his mouth.

Fire Warriors and drones moved around the vast spaceport in a frenzy of activity as the Tau wounded were loaded onto the waiting Mantas, which would take them to the escorts in low orbit. Recently, a few escorts had managed to slip under a meteor shower and launch several Mantas, so Shas'O O'res Kais took the opportunity to load up his wounded and important citizens.

Vash'ka had been retrieved after the battle, so badly burnt that he had only been identified by a genetic sample. He had been placed immediately in extensive care. The damage had been extensive, and his left leg and arm had to be amputated, along with his right foot. The flames had damaged his eyes and lungs as well. The wounds were apparently not caused by a flamer, but by some sort of weapon the Earth Caste was unable to figure out. He would fight again, the medical drones had assured them, but he would now require significant prosthesis and a suit in order to properly survive and function once more. Kro'vas did not hold such facilities needed, so he was send along with the rest of the wounded back to the Tau fleet.

Myo'li joined Kir'cea. "I thought he was dead. To be honest, I was almost hoping he would have perished," she sighed, watching Vash'ka's capsule floated away into the hanger of the Manta.

Kir'cea was surprised. "Why would you say that?"

"He is far too reckless. He does not respect authority, and I felt his obsession with the enhanced _gue'la_ was too much for the mission," she explained. "I myself do not feel he was fit to lead."

"That decision was not for you to make," said Kir'cea. "El'Vash'ka was a skilled and able commander, and he was first to breach the inner compound, judging by what I remember from the post-battle briefing," she reminded the Shas'el.

Myo'li flushed. "Yes he did, but at what cost? He was far too reckless in my opinion," she stated.

Kir'cea nodded. "I see, then. You also mentioned the purple-armored Marines. I fought them too. It's almost like a strange joke that we, who had battled both of them, are present here? Wouldn't you say?"

"I suppose you could call it that."

"Then the Marine leader that you fought…he was different from the one I met?" Kir'cea's meeting with Basiclus had been recorded by her suit and then studied by the Fire Caste's intelligence to learn everything about it.

"No. It was different, but from our combat files, the ones who arrived at the end bore similar combat markings as the ones recorded when you met that _gue'la_," Myo'li summarized quickly.

"So he's not dead and replaced by another?" the other Shas'el questioned.

"What? Were you wondering? Why did you suspect he was dead?" Myo'li asked.

"Nothing," replied Kir'cea. "It was just a thought, that's all."

* * *

**Kro'vas Fire Caste Command briefing.**

"Par'von's loss was tragic, but we must mourn him privately. We have our own battles to fight currently, as all of you must have noticed," the voice of Shas'o O'res Kais rang through the comm speakers in the auditorium.

The command-briefing center was a huge circular creation, constructed in the familiar style of the Tau. It was one of the first buildings constructed on Karovioa when the Tau had come. Dozens and dozens of cadre commanders and auxiliary representatives took seat, their various holo-drones displaying information. In the center was a massive pedestal that projected a full view of Kro'vas and the strategic situation.

Shas'o O'res Kais was one of the most respected and able warriors in the Tau Empire, bearing a large battle scar on one side of his head. He was a veteran warrior who earned his rank fighting the Tyranids and fending off piratical Eldar raiders in the outmost fringes of the Empire. He had his own command seat right next to the pedestal. Seated serenely next to him was Aun'El Sho'ka. In front sat the leaders of O'res Kais's primary contingents; Kir'cea, Myo'li, Tal'oe, an old veteran, Ras'fel, a veteran Ork fighter, and Has'kes, a student of Shadowsun.

"Par'von's command will fall to El'Myo'li. Now let us discuss the matter at hand." He changed the viewpoint by pressing a button on his command panel. "As you can see, the _gue'la_ advance on us. We cannot evacuate the city, we possess neither the time to do so nor the space to properly fit them, and we cannot guarantee their safety in any case."

"Would we not be guaranteeing their safety in Kro'vas?" asked Ras'fel.

"They are safer locked in the buildings then out in the open desert," O'res Kais replied.

Sho'ka sighed. "There will be many deaths. It is regrettable, but we have little choice in that matter."

"Thank you, Aun'el. My plan for the matter is to avoid the prolonged battle at Traknor that Par'von was forced to fight in. I will not repeat his mistakes here."

He pulled up a section of the map that displayed the northern Karo canyons. "These canyons and ridges will be the key to our victory against the _gue'la_," he said. "I will, in effect, turn this into a large Kauyon trap. This is the shortest route to Kro'vas, and it leads directly into the central city. I have no doubt they will already try elsewhere before striking here. Several cadres have been selected to act as bait, while the other hunter cadres will strike when the _gue'la_ attack them."

Many bright unit icons appeared on the map, marking the plan of battle.

"By Aun'va's name, we shall defend Kro'vas! If the enemy manages to breach our defenses, they will find our cadres waiting for them in the streets! This is our city! We cannot let it fall into the hands of these filthy _gue'la_!"

O'res Kais clenched his hand into a tight fist, and a thin smile played across his mouth.

"Let them come," he growled softly, tapping his fingers against a white holo-disc on his belt, emblazoned with the symbols _kais'kau'ui_. "Should they reach the center of Kro'vas, they will discover a new threat, far more deadly than anything they have faced on Karovioa. Let them come."

**The plains of the Traknor, six miles outside Kro'vas**

Nine led. Nine Titans: the_ Invincus Rex_ alongside the _Glorium Furiouso_, the Warlord of Princeps Marden. Three Warlords, four Warhounds and two Reavers also stood on the battlefield. Behind them and under their feet came over thirty regiments; almost eighty thousand Guardsmen of the 31st and 33rd Corps. At the center of their formation came the mighty Leviathan command mobile fortress, of which Lord General Healy commanded.

Tallarn rubbed shoulders with Catachans and Malnians. The men of the Scoros scout regiment advanced in front, as the warriors of the Harakoni and the Elysians flew above in Valkyries. And there were many, many more. The 31st moved towards the Karo canyon and ridges to the east, while the 33rd swung to the south, coming into the more open plains toward the other approach to Kro'vas.

Over six hundred artillery units began the first bombardment. Firing at maximum range, they sent a curtain of Earthshaker rounds plunging deep into the Tau lines. Great explosions ripped into the city, smashing many buildings to rubble. Only a few civilians were killed, the rest having taken shelter in the city center. Other shells fell into the Karo canyon, but the Tau warriors there had plenty of cover among the gullies and ridges. Only a few Tau were killed or wounded in the firestorm from the sky.

After twenty minutes, the bombardment stopped and the Imperial aircraft began their bombing runs, escorted by fleets of fighters and interceptors for the grand assault. From a series of hangers in Kro'vas, the Tau launched their fighters. As the two sides dueled in the air, the ground forces marched forward, over eighty thousand Imperials rushing to battle less than thirty thousand Fire Warriors and forty thousand various auxiliaries.

In the bright light of Karovioa's sun, the armies clashed.


	8. Burning Eagles

**(Author's Notes: after a long time, here it is. This is a stop gap version though, Expect a revised version by TheLoneHunter to replace this. This is the second ot last chapter of Claws Glory. Glory will be the last story dealing with the War on Karovioa, instead a new story Duty will take place somewhere else.)**

**Claws's Glory**

* * *

**Chapter 8**

**Burning Eagles**

* * *

****

Karo Canyons-Six miles from Kro'vas outskirts

A Hellhound exploded in a massive plume of promethium, sending a vast column of fire almost eight meters in the air, as streams of fire and countless bits of shrapnel shredded nearby Guardsmen. Major Asher cursed and opened fire at several shapes through the smoke-wreathed rock, they blurred and he was rewarded with an alien cry that was barely audible over the screams of the dying and wounded.

His armored companies had pushed in with the Tallarn, the Brimlock and Catachan, into the Karo Canyons, barely had they entered the main roads, where they where ambushed by the Tau forces from the front and to the flanks. Hammerheads and Broadside teams revealed themselves out of rocky outcroppings and hidden gullies, blasting away at Imperial tanks and transports. The only thing that dislodged them was heavy artillery fire.

Teams of XV8's darted in and out, with consummate skill, slaughtering entire platoons and squadrons of tanks with the lethal grace and skill of experienced hunters. Alongside them the Kroot Carnivore squads launched their own attacks, making excellent use of the terrain, all while supported by Fire Warriors and more.

''Kreiger!'' he shouted to his lieutenant, both part of the Malnian 75th's Primera Company, over two hundred and fifty Guardsmen that had entered the ravines, was now whittled down by a third at least, along with two of his lieutenants.

They where not alone, shocked and confused Tallarn and Brimlock mingled with the Primera, and on occasion Asher could spot the shapes of Catachans hunting through the smoke.

''Protect Marzz! Allow him to set up some heavy weapons,'' he shouted through the vox-bead. Nearby Lt. Koorsen led his platoon expertly in driving back the Kroot, with disciplined las-blasts, using every bit of cover as he could take.

A Crisis suit appeared through the smoke, opening fire with it's flamer and burst cannon, a dozen Guardsmen where burned to a crisp or torn apart by countless blasts at close range. Asher bellowed out an order from his hoarse voice as Corland and the others took aim with their plasma rifles. Several blue-white shots blew the Crisis suit, and another suit to scrap as they came in with to annihilate Koorsen's platoon. A brief thanks came over the vox-bead as Koorsen raised his chainsword, making short, sharp chops to signal his men to take a nearby ridge.

''Got them set up,'' Kreiger huffed as he ran forwards near a rocky outcropping, snapping off several shots with his bolt pistol at the forms of several leaping kroot, as dozens of Guardsmen formed up behind him.

''Crap! Six o'clock!'' somebody yelled and a huge clump of dirt sounded next as a trio of battlesuits landed, weapons fire blazing, cutting down dozens of Guardsmen from different regiments as the shapes of Fire Warriors deployed behind them from Devilfish.

A brave Malnian with a meltagun ran up to a XV8 and blew it to molten slag with a single shot. A suicidal gesture as he was blow to pink mist by the burst cannon of another battlesuit. Marzz's heavy weapons team opened fire as Asher shouted orders for Kreiger's and Tokan's platoons to redeploy as soon as they could, sending streams of las-fire into the teams of Fire Warriors who where firing back.

Someone gagged as a Tallarn was decapitated by a stray pulse round. Not a Malnian, Asher's mind assured him. He and his men where hard-bitten folk, Brimlock maybe.

His mind shoved that away as he grabbed a Brimlock officer and shouted instructions in his face. ''Get into cover! Take out the damn battlesuits!'' he cursed as another pulse round whopped close to him, almost hitting his arm.

He fired back as another Crisis suit lost an arm to concentrated las-fire and fell back with it's brethren, firing weapons and slaying Guardsmen as they went, Asher steeped over the body of a screaming man who lost a leg and kept on firing. He was rewarded with a death scream from a Fire Warrior as the Malnians and the Guard responded, cutting down Fire Warriors as they came in, but it was not enough, the Tau had the edge in this ambush.

For all there skill the Malnians where outmatched and outfought, a part of Asher's soul marveled at the perfection of the Tau's plan even as his men where slowly getting cut down around him. The two remaining battlesuits came in, followed by a third, decorated in ranking stripes, a Shas'vre, his mind recalled blankly, struggling to remember the words, a mid-ranking veteran.

Marzz's heavy weapons blew the one-armed battlesuit to bits as they came over, but the two remaining ones opening fire, shredding the heavy bolters and autocannons of Marzz's teams. Krieger shouted something that his sergeant bellowed as las-fire tore into the remaining battlesuits, ripping into it's joints and armor, blowing it apart after countless las-shots, the Shas'vre danced away, firing back with burst cannon and plasma rifle.

Then through the smoke the forms of a Chimera IFV appeared, opening fire, the combined fire from the heavy bolter and multi laser blew the Shas'vre apart in a hailstorm of firepower. The forms of several more Chimeras emerged from the smoke and dust wreathed battlefield. Opening fire as they did so, taking out over a dozen Fire Warriors in the first volley alone.

With the IFV's moving up the remaining Tau warriors and kroot fell back quickly under that kind of firepower, back to another ambush site, for another chance. Asher sighed as he got up. He brushed dirt off his uniform and carapace armor, then stopped when he saw there was too much. A chimera rolled up, a man popped out from the hatch. Lieutenant Korowitz, a commander of a mechanized platoon.

He saluted ''Sir looks like you had a bad time out there, thought you could use some help there,'' he reported.

''It's alright,'' Asher said,'' Let the 75th move out then,''

**Airspace over Kro'vas**

From orbit the _Sword of the Emperor_, moved into low orbit briefly, as she launched a wave of purple and grey drop pods to plummet down through the planet's atmosphere.

Moving at incredible speeds, the pods blazed quick through the skies and into their main objectives, well over three dozen of them going down rapidly, moving far too fast for the anti-air missiles to track them. Reverse thrusters jetted as they came in quickly, before slamming into the concrete streets below in the Tau's Commercial Plaza, right in the heart of the Tau headquarters area.

It was a large set of three buildings, extending roughly three hundred feet in diameter, the inner building was surrounded by a high, ornamental wall, the lawns where nicely trimmed and several, thin, delicate trees imported from Karovioa's northern reaches reached delicately into the sky. It was bordered by a much higher, defensive wall, studded with heavy weapon emplacements, around it was the Tau's commercial districts, in the distance, about two miles away, were the shapes of the anti-air missile silos, firing furiously at Imperial bombers in the sky. In the rear of the complex was distibuted a number of storage stalls and power centers for the generators of the local district. In the front were several large landing platforms were two Orcas sat.

The area was garrisoned by a mixture of Tau Fire Warriors and _gue'vesa_ auxiliaries, almost all of whom brought off planet, many of them former Guardsmen or colonists from the Empire's loyal _gue'vesa_ colonies. They where well armed with flak armor, lasguns, and many of them where even armed with pulse rifles. A trio of Leman Russ tanks, captured from Karovioa PDF armories at the start of Karovioa's conquest, stood available.

They scarcely had a chance to react before the doors of the pods slammed down to reveal not Space Marines, but assault cannons and missile launchers hidden in the embarking bays of the pods. These where Deathstorm-class drop pods, instead of space marines, they carried cannons, with a blaze they opened fire, filling the area with a hailstorm of death and destruction into the ranks of the auxiliaries.

Tens of thousands of rounds and entire missile racks where emptied as the plaza became a playground of devastation, the auxiliaries who where not expecting such an assault, lost hundreds of their number standing at ready positions. With a click the assault cannons and missile banks finally ran out of ammunition. The cost was clear, the lawns of the headquarters building and the nearby shops of the commercial district where covered in corpses where the PDF had dug in.

From the skies came another wave of drop pods, this one really carrying the Astartes of the Eagle Claws, they slammed down into the streets, avoiding the buildings as the machine spirits adjusted their courses. As the doors leapt out, almost a hundred and fifty marines from the Second and Seventh companies along with the First's veteran squads rushed out, opening fire and taking up assault positions. Along with them, Belsarius and five scouts exited quietly, wrapped in camo-cloaks.

Rezarin felt two las-rounds dissipate against his shoulder guard, as another shock tore away a tiny piece of ceramite from his kneeguard. He returned fire with his bolter blowing apart five traitors with a single carefully controlled burst.

Basiclus shouted orders, moving up his tactical squads to engage the attack, he himself at the forefront, as his Devastators deployed into favorable firing positions to sweep the courtyard.

The Dreadnought Vastor, of the Second, armed as an Ironclad, landed near the Russes, las-rounds panged of his armor uselessly, as he fired his meltagun at practically pointblank range into a Russ's turret. The superheated beam tore through the heavy armor with ease, before detonating it's ammunition supplies, causing a massive explosion, striding through the flames, the Ironclad's armor blackened and brunt, the Dreadnought rammed his chainfist into the side armor of a rapidly traversing Russ, tearing it apart.

The third Russ fired it's main battlecannon, blowing apart three marines and almost a dozen auxiliaries in the confusion of battle. Rapidly the Dreadnought ran after it, it's size belying it's relative speed. The turret turned around to fire at the Ironclad, but before it could do anything, the Dreadnought rammed his chainfist through the hull, punching into the crew compartments before activating it's heavy flamer, frying the entire crew to a crisp and the inner controls.

The auxiliaries stood no chance. They where already tired by waiting for hours in the hot sun and where bloodied and battered by the Eagle Claws assault. Out of the twelve hundred men who originally garrisoned the place, only four hundred where in fighting shape, and the rest where scattered about.

The Astartes pressed their assault, hard and fast, not giving the traitors time to reorganize or mount a coordinated defense at all, anyone who looked like an officer, or trying to rally soldiers, where taken out quickly and efficiently.

The Dreadnoughts Xenaphon and Valens blasted open the outer defense walls with a variety of heavy weapons, the Second's Devastator's squads blowing a hole in the low-set walls where the auxiliaries where gathering to fire at the marines. In less than four minutes the Eagle Claws had taken out the remaining _gue'vesa_ in the workshops and lawns, then pulse rifle shots began to whip across the lawns and from the rooftops.

The Tau had not been outside, instead sequestered in the inner halls and the barracks of the headquarters buildings, when reports of the firestorm reached them, they finished deploying just as the Eagle Claws took out the last of the _gue'vesa_.

Pulse rounds cratered marine armor, it was a hailstorm of shots, but the Tau where firing at extreme range from their firing positions on the walkways and carved stairways, and into improvised bunkers made from the storage stalls. Only three marines fell from the volleys.

''Get into cover, move up and fire!'' Basiclus commanded, but his marines where already moving, a pulse shot clipped his helmet, but did nothing to the artificer armor but leave a superficial mark, another stray shot caught Claudius's shoulder guard and Stillcho's kneepad as they dove towards a low-set storage shed just high enough to cover the marines.

The companies where spreading out as the Devastator teams sought good amounts of cover to lay down suppressing fire for the rest of the task force. Basiclus risked a brief shot and observed the defenses.

The Tau where mostly occupying a set of low walls and walkways, he counted well over fifty Fire Warriors present, with more rushing out, a right estimate gave him about two hundred Tau warriors entrenched there. Normally the Tau fell back and did not fight in these kinds of defenses. They where like hunters, always mobile and aggressive, not here, if we was correct, this was the heart and soul of the city's defenses, destroy this and Karovioa Primaris falls.

''Laetres!'' he activated his comns .''Are you there yet?''

**Shas'O O'res Kais's field headquarters.**

O'res Kais stood outside of his personal command suit, pouring over a holo-map of the situation at Kro'vas when one of his Shas'vre ran up to him. ''O'res,'' he began.

''Yes? What news to you have?'' he asked.

''The _gue'la_ marines have landed! They have somehow dropped at Aun'El's command center, Shas'O,'' he reported.

''What?'' O'res was shocked. He and his personal command cadre where at ready in Kro'vas's northern financial distract, hidden in a series of warehouses. ''How did this happen?'' he questioned.

''We do not know, only that the Aun'El is safe at the moment,'' he said.

''Why is Aun'El not evacuating?'' he asked.

''The last transmission had only two Orcas available, they did not want to risk ground fire while the _gue'la_ where still outside,'' the Shas'vre said. ''They are currently holding off the _gue'la_, but they do not know if they can hold much longer,'' he reported.

O'res quickly looked at his holo-map, bringing up the list of available units that where closet to Aun'El. He mentally sighed, the list was woefully short to what he would consider needed, most of his reserves where siphoned away into the frontline.

''Then we and El'Has'kes will depart,'' he said with absolute conviction. He then opened up another communications link. ''Kal'las, we are in need of the _Kais'kau'ui_, how soon can you be here?''

''Shas'O,'' the voice of the Cadre Elite's commander came back. ''You have ordered us to the front line, what is the emergency?'' he asked.

''Aun'El Sho'kas is threatened,'' he said. ''I know you are deployed in preparation for use in the Karo canyons but you must redirect your Mantas to the Aun'El's command center,'' he commanded.

''Understood Shas'O, we will be there,'' he said.

**Anti-Air buildings**

As the Deathstorms came down at the headquarters, Laetres's had led a group of fifty marines in a separate wave to eliminate the Tau's Anti-Air capacities and to allow Thunderhawk support to his positions and make it easier for the Imperial bomber waves to come in.

Before they had landed, a wave of a dozen Deathstorm drop pods had launched, slaughtering over three hundred Fire Warriors and Auxiliaries before they landed, then with perfect synchronization, Laetres's group landed. The drop pods blew out and Laetres's led the first squad out, with four other squads drawn from the Second and Seventh with him, he even had the dreadnought Licinus with him, armed with a lascannon and missile launcher.

Dozens of Tau Fire Warriors and auxiliaries where milling around in confusion over the corpses of their comrades. Shellshock, Laetres realized, as his squads opened fire and he gave the command for the missiles to be fired. At his command, two marines armed with missile launchers and Licinius took aim, firing at the side of the anti-air control building, three missiles corkscrewed into it, blowing a large hole in the side.

Pulse rifle shots then began to fire into the marines. Laetres's auto-senses picked out the forms of Tau Fire Warriors emerging from the balconies and coming around from the other side of the anti-air building. The control center for the orbital defenses was a tall, thin building. It had been tricky finding it out. But Imperial intelligence had been able to bribe a human auxiliary commander to find out where it was. Inquisitorial intelligence had confirmed it, but they had not given out how they found it.

Given the Inquisition's methods, Laetres really did not want to know.

''Firing positions!'' he shouted, as his squads began a steady advance, hugging cover from the strewn connivance shops scattered over the streets. Bolt rounds and pulse rounds filled the air.

Concentrated pulse fire felled three marines as they advanced, and several more took wounds, even as over two dozen Fire Warriors where killed by the return fire. The Dreadnought Licinius was striding forward casually, blazing death. Laetres saw the situation for it was, a frontal charge would take far too long by hugging cover, a frontal charge without cover would inflict far too many losses on the marines. He looked at Licinus and got an idea.

''Squad Pericles! Give me some covering fire. First Squad on me,'' he ordered, as he killed a Fire Warrior with a well-aimed a shot, springing from his position behind a beverage fountain.

He and his warriors ran, a pulse round skidded off his shoulder guard, another hit the side of his helmet, one hit his heel as he ran, firing short controlled bursts as he went with his squad.

''Honored one! Shield us and advance,' he shouted.

''Affirmative Sergeant'' the ancient war machine rumbled and advanced, firing only his lascannon now, neglecting his missile launcher's augers in favor of an unguided attack.

Three more Fire Warriors where incinerated by the lascannon, powerful beams cutting them down with ease, while frag missiles sent clouds of shrapnel into the ranks of the Fire Warriors. Pulse rounds whipped around as Laetres's combat squad advanced cautiously behind the war machine like a shield, the sergeant mentioned to his marines who began tossing grenades into the air at the Fire Warriors.

The Frags exploded, killing several Fire Warriors with each blasting, and sending shrapnel scything into the Tau squads, who fell back. In a narrow street, behind the Dreadnought, Laetres and his warriors had a large moving shield, protected from Tau pulse fire, their flanks protect by the various close shops.

At a sharp order from Laetres over the vox, his squads moved up, as Licinus laid down a fierce suppressing fire, allowing the other Eagle Claws to run up, the storm of pulse fire disrupted.

Rapidly, with mounting losses, the Fire Warriors rapidly began to withdraw, firing as they did so, many fled into the building, tossing grenades as they went. The explosions where absorbed easily by the thick armor of the Dreadnought.

Then, out of the corner of his auto-sense Laetres though he spotted something, whirling around, he saw shimmering flashes in the sky as the stealth fields of a team of battlesuits leapt on from a nearby building, engaging their jetpacks A veritable hail of burst cannon rounds felled two marines, catching them in the armor joints, while a marine next to Laetres fell as a fusion blast blew off his leg, Laetres then realized what they where doing, even as the four suits headed towards him.

Licinus, that's how the Eagle Claws where able to maintained their advance. Latres moved, firing his bolter at full auto, he dropped two of the stealth suits in a hail of mass-reactive bolters, one of them had a the fusion blaster. With the loss of that weapon they would be unable to harm Licinus, Laetres realized, then he spotted another shimmer-shape behind the suits moving out of the air. It was another suit he realized.

Clever, using the rest of the squad as a disguise, Laetres whirled around, shouting orders to target that, but the thing landed and fired at Licinus, but the shot merely blew off the lascannon arm, the stealth suit's aim being thrown off due to a rough landing under fire. A faint noise reached him, the fusion blaster was recharging, he reached for his grenades, but he had none, cursing he ran forward, activating his power fist as he did so and throwing away his bolter.

''Cover me!'' he shouted as the marines of Pericles moved up and launched a hail of bolter rounds into the other battlesuits, shredding them in a storm of mass-reactive bolts, tearing them apart.

The fusion blaster, the one around the blind spot of his reinforcements, moved in as Licinius began to turn around, upon spotting the rapidly moving from of Laetres the suit engaged it's jet pack and began to fly away. The sergeant grabbed it with his free hand, servo-muscles whining in protest, he then yanked the suit around, fusion blaster flailing to get a shot at the sergeant. But Laetres kicked the weapon away, bringing his fist down.

The energy-wreathed power fist carved through the chest unit of the stealth suit like paper, crushing the pilot into a cauterized pulp in seconds. Laetres tossed away the corpse as pulse rounds began to whip at him. One tore into the side of his helmet, tearing a large chunk of ceramite, another four tore of his left shoulderpad and tore a wound in his arm, another two hit his legs, forcing him to his knees.

Then the bulk of Licinus shadowed him, engaging another salvo of frag missiles, sending them straight into the hole where the Fire Warriors where firing from, turning the place into a hailstorm of shrapnel.

Laetres got to his feet, armor feeding him pain suppressants and combat drugs. He looked around, quickly assessing the situation, the Fire Warriors that had not fled into the control center had fled into the surrounding streets and alleyways, firing as they did no.

''Don't head after them,'' he commanded, slightly short of breath. He recovered quickly.

''Pericles! My squad! With me! Everyone else, suppressing fire immediately,'' he barked out.

Rapidly his squads moved to obey him, Laetres headed in with almost twenty marines at his back, opening fire with their bolters into the breach. As Laetres retrieved his bolter someone tossed several grenades into the buildings Muffled Tau screams sounded as Laetres and his men entered the building, executing any survivors. Rapidly, he assessed the situation, the room was wide, about twenty meters, and there was a set of staircases at the end.

He and two others moved cautiously towards it, the others following with similar prudence. A trio of grenades landed down the steps, quickly a marine caught then and threw them back.

There was a series of explosions.

''Now!'' Laetres commanded.

The marines moved up into a similar chamber, filled with almost two dozen Fire Warriors, pulse rounds filled the air as a marine went down, blood streaming from his skull and another fell, more rounds tearing into his joints. But the Fire Warriors stood no chance in such close quarters, here the marines held the advantage, moving fast and brutally they took out the Tau warriors in seconds with combat knives and bolter stocks.

After they had finished Laetres headed up into the next room, only to find it deserted except for several alien looking machines. He activated his vox.

''Spread out, plant the melta charges on anything that looks important and let's go,'' He commanded.

Less than two minutes later, Laetres and his marines, carrying their dead behind them, fled from the buildings as the sergeant hit the detonator, casing the building to explode in a yellow superheated inferno. With a mighty crash the communications wires at the top hit the ground, snapping like whips along with various debris, Laetres looked on in satisfaction as he ordered his astartes back into the markets.

''Withdraw to the Captain's position, he will need us,'' Something big cast a shadow form the sky, covering the marines, Laetres looked up, but he could only see a pair of white shapes in the distance, obscured by whirling fighters.

**Airspace over Kro'vas**

With the loss of the control center for the missile silos of Kro'vas, the airspace suddenly got much, much easier for the Imperial aircraft to enter than before. But that did not mean they had unrestricted access. Tau fighters and Sky Rays still operated, but the worst of the dangers where over, Healy had managed to maintain a comfortable 2-1 superiority over the Tau in terms of air power, and here he was throwing it all in.

Flights of Marauder bombers flew in, dropping bombs in important Tau sectors identified by Imperial intelligence, entire districts went up in flames, along with the lives of thousands of civilians and soldiers as well. But the Imperium could not bring itself to care. If one stood with the xenos, then they died with the xenos as well.

But the real advantage for the Eagle Claws was the Thunderhawks to aid them. The gunships had been waiting in low orbit ever since the Eagle Claws had been launched in their drop pods, with the defenses down, and escorted by a flight of Navy Thunderbolts, they could now swoop in. Laetres's group fell back in good order, as a trio of Thunderhawks and other Navy fighters swooped down and strafed the vengeful Fire Warriors repeatedly, making their pursuit slow and bloody.

Other Thunderhawks swooped in to aid Basiclus's forces, dropping in Chaplain Britannicus and his assault marines along with Sulla's Vanguards, who landed among he railings and walkways the Tau had hidden themselves. In such close quarters the assault marines easily prevailed, as Captain Basiclus ordered his warriors forward, taking advantage of the sudden aerial attack to move forward under arcs of spurring fire to sweep away the Tau Fire Warriors.

Rapidly the Tau fell back into the inner buildings, taking to the hallways in an effort to delay the marines while they attempted to evacuate Aun'El Sho'kas when they could.

**Kro'Vas Command Center**

The Tau had fallen back into the center, Basiclus knew. Was the Ethereal here? He hoped so. He did not want the sacrifice of his battle brothers to be in vain, but so far he had not seen hide nor hair of the Ethereal. No matter, even if he was hiding in the command center, the Eagle Claws would find him. He looked up in satisfaction as the Thunderhawk swooped away, it's cargo launched.

He had been very grateful to Laetres's success, Britannicus's troops had managed to turn the tide and get the Eagle Claws in quicker than going on foot with no backup from the skies. Behind him lumbered the forms of the First Company terminators of Trajan as they entered, called down by a teleport homer after the Tau had been driven from the walkways.

Basiclus followed up, kicking aside Fire Warrior corpses and holstering his storm bolter in favor of a bolt pistol, his other hand carried his relic sword still, behind him trailed his command squad.

''Move in, seek and destroy,'' Basiclus commanded. The Eagle Claws went in, following the Tau into the rooms and hallways where they could find the Ethereal, quickly the situation turned bloody.

Basiclus, leading Rezarin and Tor's squad along with his own into a large auditorium, was ambushed by several team of Fire Warriors, who opened fire with pulse carbines, killing two marines from massed pulse file fire and wounding several more. The onzone stink filled the air as the Eagle Claws responded with massed bolter fire and flamers, Basiclus sped forward, shooting two Fire Warriors with quick, snap-shots with his pistol before bowling over into them.

His sword decapitated a Tau warrior as he lashed out, his leg crushing the chestplate of a Shas, turning the Tau's insides into mush from the sheer force of the superhuman kick backed up by power armor. His power sword quickly cut a Tau warrior from crown to crotch, and then another had it's arm severed in a cyan spray, the alien stumbled back, screaming, Basiclus shot him in the throat, blowing off his head.

Four pulse rifle shots struck him, but they did little to his artificer armor except scratch the paint. His own command squad formed up and began hacking through over a dozen Fire Warriors taking up position. Further down Tor led his squad against another pocket of Fire Warriors scattered on the far side of the auditorium, Rezarin's squad providing fire support as Tor leapfrogged his way to the Tau.

The Fire Warrior noticed, changing fire at the marines, dropping a single marine with a pulse round through his hip and another volley blowing the arm off a Eagle Claw. Tor raised his chainsword and charged. He beheaded the first Tau warriors he hit, before ducking under a clumsy return strike to gut another warrior, a pulse rifle shot hit his kneepad, causing him to stumble for a moment.

But the redoubtable sergeant regained control and shot another Fire Warrior, before bowling into several more. Behind him a marine armed with as flamer opened fire, setting several Fire Warriors ablaze and their seating as well. Quickly Basiclus realized that using the flamers here would create a large fire. The chairs here seemed to be made of some kind of alien material that was fairly flammable.

''Flamers forward! Drive them out of cover!'' he shouted. As he ducked under the aim of another hail of pulse rifles, working his way forward towards the Tau, rapidly his marines obeyed instructions.

Two marines with flamers opened fire, sending great streams of promethium into the air at the end it did not matter if none of the Tau where actually hit by the flame, the fire quickly went about burning the various chairs.

One by one, the neat rows turned afire. Tau screams could be heard. By comparison the marines where mostly safe with their sealed power armor and genetically-enhanced constitution. It was almost ironic. The captain realized. Fire Warriors dying from fire, it was almost funny in some sort of detached, cruel manner.

Basiclus leapt through the fire like some wrathful demon. His sword cutting a Fire Warrior from crown to chin, another he reversed his stroke to impale another through the gut before shooting him off the blade. A Fire Warrior ran by screaming, covered in fire. Basiclus shot him in the armor joints, the bolt round blowing him to pieces, a mercifully quick end. Other Fire Warriors where leaping through the flames.

His command squad followed them. Lucian caught one with his power fist and pulped him. Lucian impaled another as they withdrew from the fire. Basiclus leapt him, his sword cutting down Tau after Tau.

He had to admire their courage, even with these kinds of conditions they refused to withdraw, instead of fighting to the bitter end. From what Basiclus knew this was unusual, the Tau preferring a more mobile form of warfare. It must be the Ethereal, the Ethereal was most definitely here. It was the only reason why the Fire Warriors where selling their lives so dearly. There was no other explanation. He felt satisfied. His men where not dying in vain.

Then, a round hit the promethium canister on Squad Tor's flamer. It was a freak shot, to hit at just the right angle to ignite the full ammunition of the flamer. But it happened. A massive explosion sounded, the marine holding the flamer was incinerated along with one other in a huge explosion, the rest of Squad Tor was thrown back by the sheer force of the explosion, their armor blackened and brunt. More flames spread, as several more Fire Warriors where incinerated to a crisp.

Firing off a fresh burst Rezarin looked around. They had to regain the momentum.

''Combat squad alpha, form up, beta continue firing,'' he ordered and ran forward, bowling over seated rows, and four other marines emerged from the fire, bolters blazing, as they dove into the last Tau survivors who had pulled back at the Auditorium edge, pulse rifle shots answered, but they where too close, and the area to filled with smoke and fire.

It was short, bloody and brutal, and there could be only one outcome. Rezarin strode out of the fire, holding his crackling power sword as Sergeant Tor picked himself up along with the surviving members of his squad.

Basiclus checked his helmet system, looking at the inter-squad links that fed information into his helmet. The power armor of each marine monitored their well being and such information was fed into his visor. Four marines where blinked out and several more where wounded. ''Claudius, take the wounded, move into the next chamber to treat them, Tor, mark a combat squad to guard them,'' he commanded.

He then whirled around to face Rezarin's squad and his own command squad. ''Let's go, we've got a Tau noble to find,''

**In the Command Center**

Aun El'Sho'ka stood, surrounded by his honor guard, deep within a sanctum on the Tau command center, It as a large, spartanly decorated room, with only a few sleeping pallets. But regardless of it's state, the chamber possessed a kind of peaceful sophisticated beauty and refinement. Here was where Aun'El Sho'ka meditated and contemplated while he was away from official business.

Right now it's feeling of serenity was marred by the screams of the dying and sounds of gunfire, from the familiar crackle of the pulse carbine to the deeper, roaring of the bolter. A small piece of decoration on the wall had shifted aside to reveal access to the main command network, one of his Shas'ui had made have various rooms of the command center shown. Each showed the same thing.

War.

A loud explosion sounded faintly.

''What was that?'' Sho'ka asked.

''I don't know Aun'el,'' one of his bodyguard replied.

A crackle sounded and the voice of Shas'El Wevles came online.

''Aun'el are you fine?'' his voice sounded tired and panicked, gunfire could be heard in the background.

''I am safe El'Wevles what is the situation?'' he asked.

''We are being pushed back, the only option for you is to related to the Orcas and flee and hope the _gue'la_ will not be able to hit your craft,'' he said.

''I will do so El'Wevles you have my thanks,''

''Kovash Tau-'' the voice of Wevles was cut off by a loud shot and the link went dead. Sho'ka sighed.

''El'Wevles has fought well, let us remember his sacrifice and move,''

**Outside**

Laetres hurried down the street, leaping into a gap in the wall caused by the Eagle Claws earlier, his task force moving behind him carrying some of their wounded. Apothecary Idaeon, attached to the task force had already extracted the geneseed of the dead before they left.

Feo, the interim leader of the Seventh Company since Lakaris's wounding, met him at the base. ''I trust you have handled my men well?'' he questioned.

Laetres nodded. ''They performed as well as any battle company member,'' he said, lying a little, they had performed courageously, but not as well as the members of the Second, however Feo did not need to know that.

''Well then,'' he continued. ''The Captain is in there,'' he pointed his finger at the main complex. Feo nodded.

''Captain Basiclus is currently pursing the enemy, he is confident that the Tau noble is there,'' He reported.

The sounds of battle where still present, Laetres stole a brief glance upward, the skies where swarming with varied aircraft, both xenos and Imperial.

''Well I hope so,'' Laetres sighed as his warriors began to file in behind him into the main yard, heading towards the main complex. ''It would be a shame to go through all of this for nothing,'' he commented.

''Of course-'' Feo was cut off by a loud explosion.

They both whirled around to spot the form of Dreadnought Licinus explode and slump over, flames licking at the carcass of the dead war machine. Laetres's eyes soon tracked the from of a Tau Hammerhead down the far end of the street The forms of well over a dozen Devilfish came down the street, along with the shapes of Crisis suits and various kroot warriors. All of them moving straight towards the Eagle Claws.

''We've got Xenos reinforcements coming, around two dozen pieces of armo,r'' Laetres reported over the vox-signaling his warriors to reform into a defensive position, Feo did the same.

''Captain Basiclus, we need reinforcements ASAP,'' Laetres reported as the Second's Devastators began to deploy, an astartes missile streaked out and tore off an engine mount of a Devilfish, sending it crashing down.

''This is not good,'' Feo commented. Laetres could see he was right. The Eagle Claws where effectively over stretched fighting the Tau in the command center and facing an attack to their rear. It was not a good position at all.

But Laetres did not despair. He had stopped despairing when he had been placed in the Eagle Claws scouts. Fear was present, but only as a half-remembered ghost to be controlled and suppressed for a more logical approach to warfare.

The Devilfish shot forward, rapidly closing the distance, Almost two hundred feet down, Hammerheads and Broadsides set up and began to open fire at the Eagle Claws as the marine's Devastators finished redeploying.

Two marines where blown apart by burst cannon fire from the Devilfish, a Crisis suit was destroyed in mid leap, a Devilfish was destroyed by lascannon beams and another round of Krak missiles disabled two more. But it was not enough, coming in thirty meters from the marines the Devilfish dropped their hatches, Fire Warriors rappelling out under the cover of the burst cannons and rear Hammerheads.

As they dropped down, amidst exploding frags and bolter fire, they took up firing positions among all areas of cover they could find and began answering back, the marines themselves had withdraw to the outer wall and had a comfortable defense. Kroot moved around them, taking as much natural advantage of cover as they could to close with the marines. Overhead Crisis suits flew and leapt right into the marines flanks, trying to come in and annihilate them before they got reinforcements from Basiclus.

''Well then let's give them hell,'' Laetres muttered to himself. He activated his vox.

''Pure Hearts! Pure Souls! Pure Blades!''

**Command Center**

Basiclus lowered his smoking bolt pistol as he yanked his sword from the corpse of a dead Tau Fire Warrior defending a small communications room. He rapidly assessed Laetres's latest message.

He activated the comm. in return ''Chaplain! Take you and the assault squads and head out to support Laetres and Feo, they will need it if my intuition is correct,'' he stated.

''Of course Brother-Captain, we are just finished up here, we will move out immediately,'' the voice of Britannicus said. Basiclus nodded.

''Alright then,'' he deactivated the vox and then shot a twitching corpse in the head to make sure.

''My lord, we have contact,'' reported a marine ahead with an auspex, one of Pompey's marines. Pompey, Fulgerion and Rezarin where with him. Basiclus took in the information quickly.

''All heading towards the landing pads my lord,'' he reported.

''Then let's go, Rezarin, go back with the others and finishing cleaning up, Fulgerion, Pompey, you are with me,'' he said a quick affirmative came from both officers as they joined Basiclus's command squad.

It did no take long as they soon rounded a few corners to spot a group of white-marked Fire Warriors in a distant corridor. Basiclus thought he saw a flash of robes and an honor staff, but he was not sure. One of the Tau warriors stopped him and turned around, but a bolter round from one of Pompey's warriors caught him in the gut and blew out his back, throwing the corpse against the wall with a sickening thud.

The rest of the Fire Warriors, instead of stopping to fight, ran along. That decided it. Basiclus thought. That's definitely the Ethereal's guard, he realized. He mentioned for the rest of break into a sprint.

As they rounded the corridor at breakneck speed, they saw the last of the Fire Warriors rushing out a pair of large entrance doors. Scanning the place, cautious for an ambush Basiclus led his warriors out. It was the landing pads, stretching out in front of the buildings. It was huge, almost thirty meters in length and fifty in width. This was where landing craft were received when the multitude of Tau officers came to plan war.

But now it was mostly abandoned, expect for the Tau Fire Warriors and two Orcas, looking closer with the viewfinder in his helmet, Basiclus clearly spotted the robed form of the Ethereal.

''There it is'' Even as he spoke three large shapes emerged from behind several graceful support pillars. XV8 Crisis suits, Basiclus recognized. One of the fired it's plasma rifle blowing a hole in the chestplate of a marine, another shot tore of a marine's arm and a third opened up with a fluffy of burst cannon shells.

Snarling, Basiclus activated his Iron Halo and dove forward under the aim of the burst cannon suit. The suit directly in front of him activated it's jets and began to fly away, but it had underestimated the Captain's reflexes. The relic blade pierced the cockpit of the battlesuit in one swift shining movement. Basiclus withdrew the blade and holstered his pistol, gripping the blade two handed now.

The other plasma rifle suit turned around and leapt back, firing it's weaponry at him. The plasma rounds struck his Iron Halo and flashed as Basiclus leapt after the battlesuit as the other Tau XV8 whirled around to respond, cannons spinning. The plasma rifle suit fell back, the tip of the blade missing it's chestplate by inches. But it then ran into the crackling power halberd of Paulus, who transfixed the suit and twisted it into the cockpit before withdrawing it, sending the suit crashing to the floor.

The burst cannons began to fire again, pulse rifle shots began to sound his way as Basiclus ducked and rolled, his cape behind shredded to scraps by the fire as the war machine tracked him. Several rounds hit his armor, chipping it, but the artificer-forged plate held and he turned around ready to leap at the burst cannon suit with all his speed. But a hail of bolter rounds from squad Pompey and his own command squad reduced to scrap.

Whirling around Basiclus spotted the Fire Warriors forming up into firing groups as the Ethereal ran towards the nearest Orca as fast as he could, as pulse shots rained down on the marines.

Two of Pompey's men toppled down clutching at wounds, one of Fulgerions' veterans stumbled down. ''Kraken bolts,'' commanded the Sternguard sergeant coolly as they loaded.

A hail of bolter rounds from Fulgerion and Pompey lashed out, killing nine Fire Warriors in a hailstorm of shots. Squad Pompey then split up into two combat squads, one group with a meltagun rushing forwards and another with a missile launcher hanging backward.

The missile launcher marine turned his sights towards the fleeing Ethereal and locked on, opening fire at the fleeing Tau noble. With a loud shrieking hiss the missile came loose from it's tube and raced after Sho'ka. By mere inches the missile missed the Ethereal as he stumbled on a broken tile. Watching in disbelief, Basiclus saw the missile head right into the open bay of the Orca and blow it up inside, completely missing the Ethereal.

Rapidly the Sho'ka regained his footing and ran towards the other Orca, parked at almost the opposite end of the Landing pads. Turning his attention back to the Fire Warriors he grabbed a set of frag grenades from his belt and hurled them. As they landed among the Fire Warriors who did not even flinch they exploded, killing three warriors, in six great strides, Basiclus and his command squad was upon the Honor Guard, cutting them down.

Only four Fire Warriors remained now, armed with carbines they where firing and running, tossing back grenades that landed around the Eagle Claws, rocking the pads with explosions.

''Chase them! We almost have him!'' Basiclus shouted.

**O'res Kais's command**

Shas'O'res Kais flew from rooftop to rooftop, as the Fire Warriors of his and Has'kes cadres moved down the street, advancing to assault the Eagle Claws along with some nearby kroot warriors.

Behind him, headed his Shas'vre, who followed dutifully. ''El'Has'kes do you see the _gue'la_ in front?'' he inquired. A brief crackle sounded before Has'kes responded. ''Of course,''

''It seems this will not be as quick as I hoped, I was hoping to bypass them, but they are too entrenched,'' O'res Kais observed the Eagle Claws as they shifted into defensive formations after one of his Hammerheads destroyed a war machine of there's.

''Only the Crisis suits are small and fast enough to get behind there defenses,'' O'res said. ''I will take the elite and push over the walls, you will lead the rest and catch the _gue'la_ in a too-pronged assault, is that clear Shas'el?'' he asked.

''Crystal clear Shas'O,'' came the rely.

O'res nodded. ''Let's move then,'' with that he terminated the link.

He, and sixteen other battlesuits, leapt in the air and flew far over the heads of the marines. Bolters and blasts from a verity of heavy weapons stabbed upwards, destroying three of the battlesuits, but the rest landed safely. As he landed he blasted a marine, his plasma rifle burning a hole through his gut, throwing the _gue'la_ back. He opened fire, killing three more marines with his twin-linked plasma rifles.

More Crisis suits landed among marines, opening fire and engaging their targets. Fire Warriors rappelled down from Devilfish and moved in to add their weight of fire while the kroot cautiously outflanked the maries.

It was all coming together.

Then something sounded in his cockpit as O'res fell back from a bolter volley. A stray plasma shot was absorbed by his personal shield. ''Shas'O we are here,'' came the voice of El'Kal'las.''

O'res Kais grinned. ''Then come in,''

**Command Center's lawn**

A massive shadow flew over the battlefield, casting the entire area below into darkness. One flew on, while the other shadow stayed and opened fire with it's weapons down below. Several marines where torn apart by a hail of rail rifles and ion cannons, several more missiles veered off into the ground and tore up a massive cloud of dust as the marines took cover.

Thick dust shrouded the areas, as the marines auto-senses took several seconds to filter through the thick dust and smoke. Laetres saw several dark shapes, three or four emerge from the brown-shrouded skies. Then they coalesced into Devilfish, white painted Devilfish with red markings, burst cannons fire cut through the dust as the Devilfish came down, black lines coming from the hatches as more Tau came. Through the smoke Laetres's vision could mark out white armored Fire Warriors, with bulky pulse rifles and others with smaller burst cannons attached to their arms, they where lost for several seconds by the smoke.

More dark shapes, small, but still larger than a marine, appeared and landed, plasma fire flashed in the grey and the familiar chatter of a burst cannon reached Laetres's ears as the dust began to die down. Pulse rounds came over the ground as the Manta's swooped away, unable to engage for the reasons of the heavy amount of Imperial fighter coverage and the fact that they could no longer target without hitting their own troops.

A marine next to Laetres fell back, as a torrent of pulse rounds tore into him. Laetres ducked behind a storage shed and answered back, killing one of the white Fire Warriors with a well places shot. More rounds hit the storage shed around him as Laetres returned fire again, this time at the heavily armored Fire Warriors, the shots hit the Fire Warriors, who stumbled back but remained alive and responded with their handheld burst cannons.

Some sort of Tau power armor, he realized. They where some sort of powered carapace armor, not exactly astartes grade, but clearly greater than the average Fire Warrior. It would take more shots to properly down them.

Squad Darnan from the Seventh, moved in to support Laetres, moving in combat squads they leapfrogged, one using the covering fire of the other to move into to allow them to reach close combat. One of the white Fire Warriors, sheltering behind another storage shed, like Laetres, tossed a grenade at the charging marines, with a bright blue flash two marines where killed, as if by a plasma burst, and another fell to the ground, arms severed. Massed pulse rifle felled the other two.

Some sort of plasma grenade? Clearly this was dangerous. Laetres tossed several frag grenades, and was rewarded by the twisted carcass of one of the heavy armored Fire Warriors behind tossed into the air.

As he observed the Fire Warriors again he noticed that only three Devilfish and four white-painted battlesuits had come down from the Mantas. He ran through what he knew about the Tau's transport capacity for those things.

It didn't add up. Where did the rest got then?

Then something huge landed behind him. Laetres barely rolled out of the way as a storm of burst cannon rounds chewed up the area behind him. A large tan-painted battlesuit was behind him, already turning to hit him again. A melta blast blew the upper half to the battlesuit to slag as one of Laetres's squad members was able to react quickly enough before the suit was able to jet away form the blast.

Laetres have him a thankful hand chop and activated his vox again.

''We need reinforcements here! Captain!''

**Landing Platforms**

As Basiclus and his marine pursued Sho'ka across the pads, several white shapes, five in total flew out into the air and came onto the platform. As the nearest marines whirled around a massive shape crashed into one. A huge, white-painted battlesuit slammed into a marine with incredible force, sending him flaying over the edge of the platform, a plasma rifle flashed, blowing a hole through another marine's chest killing him.

Another round blew off the head of another marine as bolter rounds flashed towards the battlesuit, causing it to jink away from the aim of the marine's bolter rounds tearing away strips of armor from the suit's edges.

Pompey then appeared behind it, surprising the battlesuit and eviscerating it with a single blow from his lighting claw, before withdrawing his claws letting the suit crash to the ground. His triumph was short-lived as he was blow in half by a pair of plasma shots from another white-painted battlesuit as for more suit landed among the marines, opening fire with a mixture of burst cannons and plasma rifles, killing three more marines.

A Devilfish landed on the platform, the forms of three heavily armored Fire Warriors in the same white-painted armor and six more white painted Fire Warriors in regular armor emerged holding bulky versions of pulse carbines. They opened fire, sending a hailstorm of shots, Paulus fell, badly wounded and another marine was slain by the sheer amount of shots. Basiclus's mind rapidly assessed the situation.

These where new suit's he had heard of small groups of elite Tau soldiers operating experimental weaponry recently, but this was the first time he had seen them. He realized suddenly that they where not trying to destroy them, but delay them.

''Command Squad!'' he voxed. ''Deal with those battlesuits, Fulgerion take out those Fire Warriors, Pompey, cover me,'' he commanded, breaking off in a sprint.

With a quick command Fulgerion's Sternguard opened fire, not at the crisis suits where engaging in a firefight with Pompey's squad and Basiclus's command group, but at the white painted Fire Warriors, Pulse rounds whipped towards them, blowing away chunks of armor. Fulgerion responded with their bolters, still loaded with Kraken rounds, the specialized armor-piercing bolts pitching the Fire Warriors of their feet until three where gone.

A Fire warriors threw a grenade at the marines, right before Fulgerion blew his head off, the grenade flew right at the marines, before detonating, a burst to plasma turned two marines to ash.

''What the hell was that!'' Fulgerion voxed. ''Vengeance rounds! Kill the battlesuits,'' he rushed out.

''What about the Captain?''

''Don't worry!'' Fulgerion shouted. ''He; take care of it! Now kill those battlesuits!''

Basiclus ran as three of the heavily armored Tau, who had been firing at the marines with their burst cannons turned towards him. Basiclus cursed, this was not going to be good in his armor. He would rather not do this, preferring to engage them with superior numbers and weaponry, but he had really no choice at all. There was no time for a finely planned assault.

He crossed his arms over his body and charged as fast as he could. A hailstorm of burst cannon shots engulfed his form. He stumbled and pitched, but he kept on going through the hailstorm. The sheer amount of rounds would have breached mere power armor several times over. But Basiclus's artificer armor was different thing, Iron Halo flaring, he charged through the storm.

A shoulder guard came off, a round hit him in the thigh and side, some of it penetrating his armor. A few more would have gotten to him, but he was already on the Shas'vre.

His relic sword cut a Tau warrior from torso up, ducking underneath a knife arm as he rammed his blade two handed through the chest of a warrior, piecing his torso with ease. The last Fire Warrior opened fire again with his burst cannon just as Basiclus turned back at him. The relic blade's severed the arm of the Tau warrior and second swing decapitated the xenos.

He felt something flare against his back as he whipped around, smashing the hilt of his blade into a Tau Fire Warrior holding the augmented Pulse rifle, trying to sneak up upon him and shot him in his armor joints. He had underestimated the protection that his amour offered them. The hilt, propelled with Basiclus's superhuman strength, smashed in the front of the Fire Warriors' skull, sending chips of white and drops of cyan xenos blood flying as the last remaining Fire Warrior leapt back and threw a grenade at him, one of the plasma ones he saw earlier.

The grenade hit Basiclus and he was wreathed in dust and blue fire for a moment. Then his huge form charged out of the smoke, Iron Halo flaring, the Fire Warrior began to open fire, but a trio of well placed bolt rounds from his pistol slew him.

Rapidly Basiclus ran towards the Ethereal, using the rest of his clip at the fleeing forms of the Tau who where almost to the Orca. Two Fire Warriors pitched forward, dead on the ground.

From behind, a single battlesuit turned and extended it's honor blades, decapitating a marine that had gotten to close. Bolter shells pattered uselessly off his iridium armor as El'Kal'les activated his jet packs. From behind a series of vengeance rounds tore another battlesuit to pieces and blew off a weapons mount on another, but El'Kal'les could not be concerned with that at the moment.

Flying in a single bound, the Crisis suit hit the ground in front of Basiclus, blades still extended, bringing up his plasma rifle quickly. ''You shall not pass _gue'la,_'' came the voice from the speakers.

Basiclus ignored him as the plasma shot narrowly missed him, his Iron Halo flaring again. His armor protested, servos whining as readouts on his helmet, informed him that his armor had 74% damage taken and mounting rapidly. He emptied another fresh clip from his bolt pistol at the Shas'el, doing no real damage, but sending the suit stumbling back as Basiclus brought his blade around at the suit, hoping to kill the pilot.

But the jet packs on the suit activated, sending the suit up as the XV8 brought the retracted blades around to protect him, the power field shearing through the blades at the midsection before the tip of the blade carved a scratch on the battlesuit's chestplate. Flying back the Tau Shas'el opened fire with his plasma gun again, as the Ethereal began to board the Orca, Basiclus's Iron Halo flared and he ducked and rolled to the side, absorbing the shots.

His armor's sensors told him that his Iron Halo was virtually at it's end, another shot would take it out. Quickly, he formulated a plan, grabbing a handful of grenades and throwing them at the Shas'el right as the last plasma blast hit. The grenades, a mixture of frag and krak grenades, exploded, stunning the Shas'el briefly, Kal'las regained control of his suit in seconds, as he assessed his suit's condition, very little real damage was actually done.

But those seconds where all Basiclus needed, he charged forwards at the Shas'el who had no time to react now, no time to counter as the marine brought his blade around at the Tau warrior.

Iridium armor was very tough. It was some of the best protection the Tau Empire could muster, even normal power weapons would have faced a challenge in piercing the armor of the suit.

But Basiclus's blade was not a normal power sword. It was the sword of Solomon Herito, almost ten thousand years old, forged in the fires of the Horus Heresy by master artificers of the Ultramarines Legion. It cut through the Shas'el's armor with ease, slashing right through the chest compartment and the cockpit before Basiclus landed on the other side, stumbling and rolling to regain his balance.

The white painted battlesuit exploded in a plume of orange fire. As Basiclus struggled to his feet just in time to see the Orca close it's hatches and lit off from the platform as he struggling to his feet.

As the Orca left, the remaining battlesuits and the Devilfish engaged their thrusters and left the platform, leaving only the marines and the corpses of the slain behind on the platform.

Basiclus fell to his knees. ''Dammit!'' he cried, hitting the ground as his armor wheezed in protest. ''He got away!'' he felt frustration like never before.

He had failed.

''Captain,'' The voice of Belsarius sounded over the vox.

''Yes,'' he responded wearily, grabbing his weapons and turning around.

''He did not escape,'' the scout said, walking calmly down the landing pads, Basiclus could see that he held something with his genetically enhanced vision.

**Orca**

Aun'El Sho'ka was hustled into the troop compartment by the last two surviving Fire Warriors and strapped into a harness seat by a bodyguard. It felt strangely depressing to see the Orca's dropship so empty. Everything was quiet now. He remembered how his heart pounded, the large purple shapes firing after him as he and his guard fled, and the forms of the Cadre Elite arriving to fight off the marines.

It still shocked him to see this much devastation fought in his name. The _gue'la_ had committed so much into killing him, and now they would not succeed, he realized. It still puzzled him of how stubborn the _gue'la_ where. It was one of their greatest traits and their greatest strengths in his opinion. To see them refuse the Tau'va again and again despite the sheer illogic of it.

Everything would be much, much better, if these foolish _gue'la_ simply accepted the Tau'va as it was, instead of perpetuating this carnage on the people of Kro'vas, he though in sorrow as he looked down.

Then he noticed something.

''Shas'ui is that compartment supposed to be flashing like that?''

The Fire Warrior whirled around at the object. ''It's a bom-''

Everything went white.

**Landing Pads**

Belsarius simply released the button on the detonator where he held it, as the marine watched the Orca explode in a massive fireball. Carefully poking the detonator Belsarius looked up at the flash.

''How did-'' Basiclus turned around.

''It was a backup plan, I snuck into the landing pads with my scouts and hid demolition charges into both of the transports my lord, it was a backup plan in case you had failed to kill him, regretfully I was forced to use it,'' the scout explained

''And you did not tell me this?'' Basiclus did not know whether he was supposed to angry or happy that Belsarius had done this. The scout merely shrugged.

''It was a thing I thought up when I found out exactly out far the Orcas where deployed away from each other,'' he answered.

''Well then,'' Basiclus suddenly received a stream of tactical data into his helmet. His armor was almost trashed and his Iron Halo shorted out. ''We hardly have time to chat, our brothers are hard pressed, let us move,''

**Commander Center field**

Sergeant Halteker watched grimly as his lascannon of his squad, tore into the side of a white-painted Devilfish, sending it crashing down in flames, below were Squad Halteker was taking cover. He and his team had already destroyed two Devilfish and a Hammerhead so far, now it was three, and he was looking to get more. Only a single marine of his squad had fallen so far to the Manta's bombardment.

Then a pair of Crisis suits appeared, weapons blazing, burst cannons chewing up the fortified post that they had been clustered in. Halteker had barely time to whirl around before a plasma round shot but, blowing of his left foot. Bolter rounds issued from his squad into the Crisis suits who tore away at strips of armor as they jetted away quickly. Halteker cursed from his spot on the ground.

From below Shas'O'res Kais jetted forward, his Shas'vre following behind, he opened fire at a combat squad of Astartes pinned under fire by some of the CE warriors, but they merely ducked and took cover.

He was not going to hit them from this angle. ''Come,'' he send over to his Shas'vre as they flew overhead to land behind the Astartes who where turning around in response to the new arrivals.

His plasmas rifles and fired, sending a marine flying back, a large chunk of his shoulder missing, while his burst cannon opening fire, hitting several marines as his Shas'vre began to follow his example.

Then something wretched as O'res's sensors detecting something big moving fast towards his position. He barely had time to turn around to see a massive dreadnought charge through a silo shred. A huge power fist smashing one of his Shas'vre to scrap with a single movement while O'res leapt back into the air as the dreadnought grabbed the other with it's other power fist as it tried to slip away.

A single point blank melta blast was sufficient to reduce the Shas'vre to scrap as Vastor looked up in time to see a plasma blast strike at his armored sarcophagus, blowing away some armor, but otherwise leaving the dreadnought unharmed.

Moving up, Vastor's augers tracked the commander and opened fire with the pair of shoulder mounted missiles, quickly tracking him they impacted the Shas'O with a large explosion. Flying away from the smoke was O'res, his personal shield holding up strong as he flew back over the battlefield away from the large _gue'la_ machine, right out of the range of the Dreadnought.

That was very dangerous, he reminded himself, it was a good thing he had his shield generator. Then something slammed into him from behind just as his shields began to turn off in a sudden movement. His left weapons attachment came off and his visual sensors suddenly showed the vision of a grinning skull and a golden winged weapon as his suit shuddered again and again. The two energy fields of Britannicus's rosarius and his shield generators clashed and sparked.

Then both shorted out as Britannicus's Crozius gouged away strips of armor as they fell to the ground.

They both came spiraling down, hitting, plowing into the side of storage silo with a massive thud, rapidly the Chaplain was thrown right into the wreckage of the silo as he skidded.

O'res recovered first, scanning for his assailant, abruptly spotting him starting to emerge form a massive pile of various storage part. Quickly he raised his remaining plasma arm and pointed it at the now defenseless Chaplain. A marine came at him, attacking the Shas'O with a chainsword that skidded off his iridium armor, snarling, O'res turned around and spotted a marine with a bolter and power fist advancing, firing at him.

The rounds hit his head sensors, scrambling them momentarily as his backup systems came online, snarling, the Tau commander shot the chainsword marine and manuvered his suit around. O'res kicked the sergeant back as he came in to hit him with the deadly power fist, a weapon that he knew would destroy even his armor. Then he detected another marine.

It was the Chaplain. He pointed the plasma rifle at him, but the Crozius struck upwards and severed the arm at the elbow attachment, tearing away the piece. Leaping back almost a foot, he tried to engage his thrusters.

But they sputtered and died.

They had been damaged in the fall. Briefly Or'res notched the damaged jump pack his foe was wearing right before he was hit by the Chaplain who swung the Crozius into his torso. The first blow ripped away a chunk of armor, the second, the inner secondary plating, the final one pieced the cockpit and ended the life of Shas'O Ta'un Res Kais in one final blow.

His battlesuit topped over, as Britannicus was pulled down by Laetres behind the ruins of a storage shed just as a set of pulse rounds came flashing by where the Chaplain was just standing.

''Laetres!'' Britannicus said.

''You have to be careful brother-Chaplain,'' Laetres explained. ''After getting here so soon we can't afford to lose you like that, speaking of which where is the Captain?'' he questioned.

''Right here,'' the voice came over the vox.

**Has'kes Command**

With the death of O'res Kais, Has'kes was suddenly thrust in command, right after confirmation of the Shas'O's death he received word that the Aun'El's Orca had been destroyed.

Needless to say this left him in quite a shock.

When Basiclus arrived with over fifty marines collected from the inner halls of the Command Center, he found the Tau's attack coming apart, whereas before their attack well-planned and executed, units seemed to fly off and attack mercilessly with no kind of caution. The marine captain guessed it was the result of the Ethereal's death, taking advantage of this, he exploited the holes in their assault and drove the Tau back over the fields and storage silos.

Around the same time he did that, a trio of Thunderhawks had come in, strafing the Tau, blowing up grav-tanks and killing Fire Warriors by the dozen with lascannons, bombardment cannon and hellstrike missile. Faced under attack by these two attacks the Tau where forced to withdraw as soon as they could. To his credit, despite his shocked condition, Has'kes withdrew in exemplary order, the Cadre Elite covering his retreat.

The Imperium had won.

**Kir'cea's Command Post**

Shas'el Sa'cea Kir'cea was piloting her suit at Karovioa's northwestern art houses, driving her cadres against the forward Guard assault elements when the news came.

Hiding behind a large commercial house a transmission came in from Has'kes.

''Shas'el!'' he shouted.

''What is wrong! Why are you shouting?'' he questioned. What had gone wrong?

''Aun'El is dead!'' he explained. ''O'res Kais is dead!'' he was shocked.

So was Kir'cea, it was as if her worst nightmares have passed. ''Are you sure about this?'' she questioned.

''Absolutely I say O'res die myself and the Aun'el's signal vanished when he Orca was destroyed,'' the Shas'el's voice was filled with despair. ''We must avenge Aun'El! We must throw everything we have immediately at the _gue'la,_'' he explained.

''No,'' Kir'cea shook her head. ''We will not,''

''What are you saying?'' he asked.

''With the death of Aun'El, I am the senior most commander on this planet, I am in command of the Shas'ar'tol Ka'vio now,'' she sighed.

Has'kes realized she was right. ''Then what do you mean?''

''Aun'El is dead, the _gue'la_ will pay, but nor now, did you tell anyone else?'' she asked.

''Yes, I gave orders to the communications tower, the news is already spreading,'' Has'kes confirmed.

''Then we have lost,'' she said grimly. ''Aun'El is dead and we have lost our leadership and moral support, we are struggling to hold onto the flanks and the only place we are totally holding back the _gue'la_ is the Karo canyons,''

''To put it simply El'Has'kes, even if we win this battle, we will not survive a second assault our defenses are being pushed to the limit, the _gue'la_ still have more soldiers, and their marines still roam about the city, and what's worse it that they have regained the dominance in the air,''

''You would withdraw and leave the civilians to their deaths?'' he questioned her, aghast.

''No, I will not lead both my army and the civilians to death, ether way, the civilians die here, but the Shas'ar'tol can still be of use to the Tau'va, I will not lead my army to destruction out of vengeance,''

''But-''

''But nothing'' she thundered ''that is the end, as your commander I order you to do this, we can come back later to reclaim Ka'vio, do you understand Shas'El?'' she asked.

''Yes Shas'el,'' he terminated the link. She sighed in frustration and anger.

''Did you here that?'' she asked Myo'li who came behind her in her own battlesuit.

''Yes I did,'' she replied. ''As hard and cruel as it is, you did the right choice, ultimately your actions will benefit the Tau'va, we do not need to add our deaths to Aun'El's'' he stated.

''Very well then'' Kir'cea opened a channel

''Attention, This is Shas'El Sa'Cea Kir'cea, Aun'El is lost, O'res is dead, we must withdraw to preserve the Shas'ar'tol as a fighting force,'' she paused.

''I feel your pain, Aun'va feels you pain, but we must not despair, we must not give into the Mont'au, we must withdraw to the deserts, there the fleet can pick us up,'' she continued.

''Until then, Ko'vash Tau'va,''


	9. Embers

**(Author's Notes:This is the last, full thanks to various people will be at the end)**

**Claws's Glory**

**Chapter 9-Epilogue-Embers**

* * *

**Tau Custodian Class Carrier **_**Tas'li**_**-In orbit around Karovioa-Medical bay**

Deep within the bowels of the _Tas'li_, Vash'ka slept in a medical coffin, heavily sedated, and on life-support, attended by medical drones at all times, all around the clock to minister his critical condition. He had come on the Manta escorts, coming in to board the _Tas'li_ under a meteor shower. The escort had boarded the Custodian class carrier, unloading it's passengers of wounded.

Vash'ka had been imminently rushed into the critical ward. He had been rapidly stabilized, Medical drones and an Fio Medical team had prepped him for emergency surgery to rebuilt him and save his life.

But now, he slept, under the effects of the drugs, but inside his mind another battle played fiercely.

Blood and Fire, that was what he remembered in his dervish, hate, filled recollections.

**Six years ago, during the Sohren-Kuvasa War- Sohren Secundus, Port Harbinger, docks district**

Harbinger was dying.

The entire docks district burned from flamers both, Tau and Imperial weapons, from explosions and detonations of fuel stacks. It was a complete and utter inferno that engulfed everything one could see. Even the sun was blocked by the thick palls of smoke. Clouds of ash and smoke hung over the battlefield, turning it into a night sky from above, illuminated by an endless sea of fire and flames.

The Tau had pushed through the warehouses, and now at the edge of Port Harbinger, boarding the Sohren river, a massive, blue-green body of water what formed the heartland of water-borne trade in the region.

Massive barges, the smallest easily the size of a Manta destroyer, formed the main links of trade to operate on the massive river-lake, allowing countless thousands of tons of goods to be delivered successfully. Normally in peacetime they remained tied to the docks of Prot Harbringer, each a floating castle of trade and commerce, watched over the rich, merchant barons. On peacetime there was even guided tours to see the behemoths.

And now most of them where destroyed, mostly from aerial bombing by Barracuda fighter craft, but sometimes by Imperial sabotage to deny the massive, castle-barges to the Tau.

A foolish move in retrospect, considering the Tau's high technology.

Vash'ka and his team had walked right into one, the huge, fortress barge was tethered so closely to the docks, that the aliens could be forgiven for accidentally moving into their to engage the last pockets of Imperial resistance. Vash'ka landed his XV8 down, four las rounds deflecting from the chestplate of his suit as he fired his flamer, roasting several Guardsmen hiding behind a commercial crate, as his burst cannon spat suppression fire.

_''Do you realize where we are?''_ V're Nev'ren asked Vash'ka as he came along, weapons providing support fire as Keth'ran moved into attacking positions, with her own flamers among the Guard.

_''Some sort of barge-thing, it's huge, I've never seen anything like it,''_ Vash'ka answered.

_''There does not seem to be many of them left, and we are starting to sink,''_ Nev'ren noticed.

Indeed several sections of the barge was already coming apart, water rushing in to meet the fire and smoke. In several placed bloody steam arose, as the water mixed with the fire and the blood of the dead.

_''Then let's make it the last,''_ Vash'ka shouted, finishing off the last of a Guard squad with his burst cannon.

_''It's already on it's way,''_ Nev'ren noted a piece starting to break off. ''Let's get out of here, we've advanced too far tactically,'' he noted.

Vash'ka shrugged and made to withdraw as las-bolts clipped the edges of his battlesuit and flames licked at his XV8. He had no real desire to kill _gue'la_ who where already going to die.

Then Keth'ran died.

Two missiles had corkscrewed out of the flames, tearing her suit apart, overloading the shield drones for a brief second before annihilating her, her suit-link terminated in a brief, static burst.

_''What was that!''_ Nev'ren whirled around, abruptly, his suit's sensors, picked up the forms of several _gue'la_, after several seconds of struggling to pierce of the smoke and fire.

There was a team, armed with missile launchers and lasguns, barring the way back, having a commanding view through the castle-barge. Any attempts to go around or above would invite a missile attack.

But it was better than nothing. _''Move around-''_ but Nev'ren was cut off.

Vash'ka was already moving, plunging through the inferno, using it to obscure the sight of the Imperial gunners, it was an incredibly dangerous move, considering he was moving through the fire itself. Thankfully his armor's sealing systems held and Vash'ka emerged, among the startled gun team. His burst cannon blowing six Guardsmen to pieces, ad his flamer also spoke, roasting several more.

A Guardsmen hurriedly finished loading his rocket launcher and swung it around, to shot Vash'ka in the back, sensing this the Xv8 pilot turned around and aimed his flamer at the human soldier.

They both fired, there was an explosion.

The next thing Vash'ka knew, was his sensors and viewscreen being engulfed by black static, after several seconds his backup systems kicked in, providing a clear view of the castle-barge. Then he felt the pain, looking down, he cursed, seeing the left side of his body pieced by three pieces of shrapnel, cyan blood ran down from his left temple over his eyes, obscuring his vision as his suit's monitors sent a stream of Tau characters across the screens, informing him of the damage he took.

Something crackled on his suit communications link, but Vash'ka did not hear what it was, the ring of lasguns sounded against his battlesuit. He whirled around, firing both of his weapons. But they sputtered and died as the blasts rocked back. The damage must have taken both of them out, he was in a bad spot, his armor breached and his weapons gone, both from the explosion.

Even know he could feel the heat, hot even for the warm-minded Tau species, but the las-bolts could penetrate his wrecked suit, never mind the flickering flames all around his suit. Something landed beside him. His sensors cleared up enough to show the suit of El'K'yos himself arriving, along with two of his Shas'vre coming down to gun down the last remaining Guardsmen.

Through the smoke emerged Nev'ren. _''Ui'Vash'ka!''_ he shouted.

_''I'm fine,''_ Vash'ka replied, straying himself.

Then K'yos turned to look at him._ ''Then let's get out of here now, I need you redeployed,''_ he commanded. Rapidly the suits blasted away, as the castle barge groaned and collapsed as they flew back into the main port.

_''That was a reckless maneuver Ui'Vash'ka!''_ Nev'ren sounded almost angry.

'_'Reckless it may be, but the bravery and ingenuity of that tactic was good, he single-handedly took out most of the gue'la soldiers over there,''_ K'yos commended.

_''You are wounded, you should retreat for medical attention''_ the Shas'el continued.

_''I can still fight,''_ replied Vash'ka.

Their was a sound over the suit commns. It took Vash'ka several seconds to realize that K'yos was chuckling. The great K'yos was lightly chuckling.

_''I like that, you are brave, very, brave, I will need warriors like you in the future,''_ The Shas'el said.

**Tau Custodian Carrier **_**Tas'li**_**-In orbit around Karovioa Septimus-two weeks later**

Kir'cea stood, dressed in her off duty uniform, standing in the viewing port on the _Tas'li, _standing in the mirror-shined hallway, hands clasped behind her back, looking out intently into space. She was looking at Karovioa Primaris, Ka'vio as the Tau called it, it was now a green and blue speck in the vastness of space, soon the Tau would leave it behind to the _gue'la_, but perhaps not forever. Even now the last of the fleet was moving off, the Imperial fleet having come en masse.

The hallway itself was smooth, with shinning, reflective metal floors, and mirror like walls, she could even see herself if she looked down. But she was staring straight out the port.

Her mind turned over the memories, or leading the remnants of the Tau army, those who where still mounted on grave-tanks and those few Orcas and Mantas, along with civilian land speeders. She had feared the worst during the entire evacuation. But in all, it had been far better than she had hoped, the Imperials had been more cautious then she expected, slowly, gingerly, moving into the city.

Of course there where still casualties bombing runs by lone Marauder bombers, but they where negligible. Of course groups of isolated Fire Warriors holed themselves up in the city. They died, there where simply too many Guardsmen to make a difference, she knew, and there still where the purple _gue'la_ marines that roved throughout the city, after they had killed the Aun'El.

Her knuckles tightened. Aun'El was dead, along with O'res Ka and the better half of the Tau army on Karovioa, the casualties sustained over the length of the campaign was bad enough, but the losses at Kro'vas was especially unbearable. Logically, she knew she could not blame herself for it, she had followed orders, done her part. She would have not been able to arrive at the command center anyway, without abandoning her assigned post.

The Tau'va demanded obedience, it demanded flexibility and innovation tempered by following orders and trust in one's commanders. Kir'cea had done all of that to what was expected of her.

But it still hurt her inside.

At the end of the hallway the doors opened. The automated mechanisms sliding open gently. She saw from the mirrored walls that it was Myo'li, dressed in her own uniform.

''I came to see you, El'Kir'cea,'' she said.

The other female nodded, it was useful having her around. ''What do you need to talk to me about?'' she said, although she had a suspicion she already knew what she wanted to say.

''There will be blame for this,'' Myo'li said softly. ''O'res and Aun'El died like heroes in battle, but the fact still remains that we have lost the city,'' she commented.

''I did what was right,'' Kir'cea shot back.

''I know you did, I don't blame you at all, but others will, they feel that you could have won,'' she reminded her.

''We lost out air cover, and where surrounded by overwhelming numbers, I fail to see how we could have avoided annihilation if we had stayed,'' Kir'cea stated.

''O'res could have done it,'' Myo'li replied.

There was silence.

''I am not O'res, as much as I wish he was alive, he died, I cannot change that fact,'' Kir'cea replied after several seconds.

''Even if you are not as good as O'res, some will feel that they could have done better,'' Myo'li continued.

''Who O'Toles? O' Karvon? O" Tash'van?'' Kir'cea asked, naming the three most violate commander she could think of.

''They would be a possibility,'' the other female replied.

''But they cannot remove me, surely there are others who would see my position? O'K'yos, O'Ber'fes?'' she questioned.

''Those two command prestige, yes, but your career will take a hit for this,'' Myo'li said.

''The rest of us will go on, to another warzone, you might get lucky to serve in pacification duties, at least……'' she trailed off.

They both fell silent again.

**Kro'vas**

The death of Aun'el Sho'ka and O'res Kais had effectively ended the war. It did not end immediately, but the Imperium's victory was assured when the Tau decided that Kro'vas was no longer worth fighting for.

They retreated, some well, some poorly, entire Tau units who traversed on foot due to lack of Devilfish, where encircled and annihilated, the ground-bound kroot where almost annihilated. Some Tau units fought to the last in the smoke, filled ridges and gullies of the Karo canyons, expending every last pulse clip and grenade they had in last stand actions against the Guard.

But the Imperial Guard could not be denied, they crushed each pocket with overwhelming numbers of bayonets and lasrifles, alongside Leman Russes and Hellhounds.

Healy's armored regiments and his Titans successfully swung around the Karo, through the desert. Here they plunged into the outskirts of Kro'vas, brushing aside the retreating Tau resistance. Slowly, more boldly, the Guardsmen traversing through the Karo canyons, moved more cautiously, for fear of more resistance or any xeno-tech booby traps that they feared the Tau to have made.

They came two hours after the armored forces. Both groups met up in the western factory districts, before both moved out through Kro'vas, reclaiming it block by block.

It was not hard, most of the Tau forces that still had mobility, escaped from the city and moved into the desert as soon as they could, Tau citizens with transportation joined them or launched in small escort aircraft from the city spaceport.

But it was no calkwalk ethier. Some Tau Fire Warriors disregarded Kir'cea's orders, and fought to the last, in memory of their dead Ethereal , consumed by rage they bloodied the forward Guard elements. But they too died. With their deaths, the Imperial Guard seized control of the city, completely, moving about and garrison their troops as quickly as possible to take control of all access.

The lead vehicles of the Tallarn regiments had made contract with the Astartes of the Eagle Claws three hours after they entered the city. Brother-Captain Basiclus simply handed the burned out command center to them, as his astartes gathered their dead and wounded. With the Tau fighters gone, the marines returned to their battle barge in orbit via Thunderhawk, leaving only a massive pyre behind, constructed from Tau corpses, adding another gigantic pall of smoke to a city already wreathed in smoke and fire from aerial bombing.

From the skies then emerged ships, gigantic landing craft bringing in more and more troops. The remaining Tau citizens, who had not fled, neither went into hiding, or where executed on the spot by the invading Guard.

The war was effectively over.

**Somewhere**

Zalk fought, for how long he did not know.

He fought daemons as they came, his green sword-lance plunging into daemonic bodies, and his shield countering daemonic strikes, warp claws, fiery talons, black spines and barbed tentacles. As he fought longer and longer, he realized this did not seem like any fight he had ever fought. This was no battle of physical claws, regardless of what he was seeing. He felt no loss of energy, no jots of stress when a heavy blow was blocked.

No. This was mental, all of this, he realized, was just a metaphor for what was going on in his soul, none of this was real. But how had be known that? He thought, as a wave of memories came over him.

Him firing a bolter, him on a mist-shrouded world battling huge, green-skinned warriors on a lava world, fighting twisted and debased creatures, much like those in front of him. Him in a building, fighting warriors in tan armor and unusual weaponry. And then the fire, so much green fire, blowing away so many of those hoofed warriors, so many bird-like things and tall xenos Dreadnoughts, all of them burned to a crisp by a god-like power he had always guarded himself against.

Slowly he realized something, the daemons where disappearing. And not from his weapons, snarling lizard-things, screaming witch-hags, tentacled abominations, they all equally began to fade. Determined he hacked into them, with fresh determination and vigor, carving his green lance into their bodies, one by one, purging this worlds of the last of the daemons before him.

At last he was alone, something thundered in the distance as stormclouds began to gather.

Then his world fell apart.

A piece of the ground collapsed, coming down, barely ten feet away from him, looking down shocked, Zalk peered down the hole, seeing not earth as he expected, by space and start again.

With a harsh, disgusting, sucking sound, his mindscape unraveled, piece by piece, fragments of his world came apart, revealing bright, gleaming starts alongside the black void of space. Strangely, the temperature did not change, nor did his footing change even when the ground beneath his feet disappeared, indeed, it was like he walking on thin air. He still breathed, oddly.

''Zalk,'' a voice called. He turned around.

Nikarnus was there.

He was the same age of him, the rough-faced boy, face covered by scars of a childhood disease, blue eyes twinkling as he looked upon him with an almost distance, detached look.

''Zalk, it's me,''

''Nikarnus?'' Zalk questioned. He startled, shifting into a Guard stance.

''You! You could be one of them,'' he assured at Nikarnus, who merely smiled.

''No, I'm dead are I not? I come here of you,'' he stepped forward.

The green lance and shield fell away in Zalk's hands in shock.

''You are dying Zalk, you should not delay the inevitable,'' he gestured around.

''This is the broken fragments of your mind,'' Nikarnus smiled. ''Your going to die, I won't lie to you my friend,''

Zalk was incredulous, but he saw each piece of the terrain around him disappearing into a void.

''Zalk, I do not lie, You must go with me now, you don't want to keep everyone waiting,'' Nikarnus said.

''Waiting?''' Zalk questioned.

''Yes everyone, our friends, our family, you human family, your mother and father, just lie down,'' he walked over, planting one arm on Zalk's shoulder.

''Accept this, holy reality, come back so the Emperor will know of your deeds,'' he continued.

Nikarnus smiled. ''Just rest now,''

Zalk stared at him, then cast his eyes to the ground. Was he really dead? It seemed so shocking to him, he did not want to die, but if what Nikarnus said was true, then he had much to go to.

''I-I,'' he began stuttering.

''I-I want to-'' he began.

Then it hit him.

A spear of green fire tore through Nikarnus' back.

''You made a mistake,'' Zalk said, as Nikarnus choked out a why.

The boy looked at his, as his features budged and shifted, growing older and holder, his muscles expanding, his body growing an additional three more feet.

''You should have never worn his face, I remember fully now, I know that a battle brother told me not to die, and so that's it, I choose not to die here,'' Zalk said as Nikarnus's face transformed.

Gone where the features of his friend, instead the twisted monstrous features of a daemon pushed through, sickly white light poured from it's mouth and ears as it shed it's disguise. It grew many, many feet, with massive claws and fangs. But Chemosian knew it was just another metaphor, but this one was different, the rest of the daemons had been bottom feeders.

This was a Herald a daemonic noble or higher-daemon. Not quite a greater daemon, but one that was dangerous nonevertheless. The thing turned it's glowing white gaze upon him.

**_''DIE''_** it said simply, rushing at him.

Then there was only green fire.

**_Sword of the Emperor_-Medical bay**

Sensors flashed as the monitors connecting to Chemosian's body alerted Apothecary Nerva, who looked over the multiple data-screen on the monitor booth connection to the medi-chamber he was in. Both hearts where activating, beating harshly, brain activity and the psychic resonator had both increased significantly. All lights went yellow, the sigh of major activity. He looked again, yellow everywhere.

Nerva looked over at Demertius who held up a hand as the gun servitors whirled around, weapons tracking on Chemosians's shaking body in preparation of a possible daemonic summoning.

''Is he-'' he Apothecary began.

Demertius shook his head. ''Not yet,'' he answered.

Then Chemosians's eyes snapped open.

Green light pored from his eyes and mouth right before he fell back onto the medi-capsule, breathing heavily, Demertius gave a harsh shout just as the gun-servitors locked on to Chemosians's body.

Demertius walked over to the other librarian, who was breathing shallowly, his eyes flicked upwards.

''Demertius?'' Chemosian asked.

''In the flesh, how are you feeling brother?'' Demertius questioned him.

''Like hell,'' he answered.

Demertius smiled.

''Welcome back brother,''

**Kro'vas-One Week after Liberation**

It was surprisingly quite, Basiclus reflected, for such an battleground.

The Eagle Claws captain stood, several feet in front of a landed Thunderhawk in the former Tau spaceport, now sized by the Guard, he had chosen a nearby hill to overlook Kro'vas.

It was a very old tourist spot, he was told, people used it even before the Tau had come, for centuries to look over the city. Basiclus now used it to look at the bombed out devastation of the former Imperial capital. It was a good view, forty meters high, he had waked up a series of quartz steps to the top, flanked by to members of his surviving Command squad as he gazed down at the city.

It was in the process of rebuilding, Healy's engineer corps had been very efficient in their efforts to remake the city back into it's Imperial image, that would take many months of course, but Healy waved aside such concerns.

He could see each destroyed home and building below, here a missile blast tore away the wall of an alien structure, another plasma round burned away a room, in another bolter rounds had completely wrecked it. The populace had not been so lucky, the Guard had launched mass-executions of the Tau who where unable to flee, moving them to hastily built execution camps in the desert.

Some Tau where taken away by the agents of the Inquisition's Ordo Xenos. For whatever reason, Basiclus did not care, that was none of his business at all, nor was the devastation of the populace.

The Eagle Claws where warriors of the Emperor. Such purges did not concern them. They did their jobs and the Inquisition did theirs. No more, no less.

Only a few Guard regiments where at Kro'vas, now restored to it's name of Karovioa Primaris, the rest where hunting down the remnants of the Tau armies or preparing for Healy's Triumph.

Healy was already planning hiscelebration. Not at Karovioa Primaris, but at Newark, a city mostly untouched by the ravages of war when the Imperium had regained to several months prior. It was to bee a massive parade, showing the Guard, the Titans, and the other members of Imperial Services. Captured Tau, Kroot, Vespid prisoners where to be paraded, along with their captured weapons.

It was intended to be a testament to the glory of the Imperium and Healy's own ego. Reminding the newly-liberated citizens who now ruled Karovioa. At the end of the march a mass public execution would take place. Healy had invited the Eagle Claws to take part, Basiclus politely refused, for a number of reasons. Primarily to move as quickly as possible as to come to the Chapter meeting, and secondly to gainsay any accusations of glory-hogging that Kommneus was claiming.

Basiclus himself was going to be judged by his own brothers on those same changes. Almost the entire chapter would be there, along with the entire fleet, anchored at the Imperial world of Striel Gloria.

Here, Basiclus would be judged whether he was a true warrior of the Emperor. The captain himself was not worried, looking over the planet he felt all the sacrifices so far had been well worth it.

The Tau had been beaten, a major defeat inflicted. They would not return to Karovioa anytime soon. The planet itself would soon reopen it's mines and factories, and begin to service the Imperial war machine once again. This victory would have an affect on the sub-sector, maybe even the entire sector himself. It was simply another victory in a long list of battles that Basiclus had fought over the two and a half centuries of his life.

It would not end here, there would be more battles, even if he was demoted from his command. As a Space Marine he could expect only war for the rest of his life. Most likely he would die somewhere on a battlefield.

He was not afraid of that fate, he welcomed it.

''My lord? The Thunderhawk is waiting'' Stillcho came up.

''I see, let's go then'' Basiclus said.

He turned around, taking one last look at Kro'vas's broken husk.

Then he left.

**_Tas'li_-Medical section-Over two weeks later**

Fio'vre, Ked'is looked over at his medical monitors, each displaying parts of the patient's body, suspended on the medical coffin, the doors to the pod opened up and hooked up to the various pieces of medical machinery. The room stank of blood, Ked'is sniffed, it would be sterilized of course. He hated the smell of blood. Ironic for his position as an Earth Caste medical specialist in reconstruction of bodies.

Shas'Vre Vior'la Vash'ka was wounded quite badly, the damage had been extensive, far too much for a vat-grown replacements. Instead Ked'is decided to rebuild him with robotics. It took several days to precisely fit the bionic limbs, and rebuilt the shattered respiratory and ocular systems, least of not to say the burned vocal cords. But it had been done, quickly as he could do it.

The remnants of his old uniform had been stripped away, taken away and burned because of contamination. He had been stripped naked and them rebuilt and re-covered by Ked'is's own hard work. Grey covered him, along with black edgings, his sept colors where now boarding his shoulders and chest, like some kroot tribe's battle markings. They all covered his new forms.

Three limbs now replaced his severed arm and leg, his remaining hand, he was able to save. His torso now housed it's own pacemaker and breathing apparatus, never again would he be able to breath again. His eyes had also been damages by the fire and smoke. They where now to be linked to ocular implants in his new helm, that would allow him to see the world, the information taken directly past his damaged nerve centers.

His skin and body was now covered underneath is new bodysuit by a thin layer of armorplast and blast finders, that directly protected his blackened skin from the conditions outside. It covered him like armor, plugging directly into his bionics, dispensing constant healing fluids and balms to speed along his recovery properly, as well as monitor his health and function.

All that remained was for his face to be covered, the burnt, shattered wreck of a face. Ked'is stared in slight disgust, he had worked for days on this patient, but still the sight unnerved him. Medical drones buzzed about, carrying the mask. It resembled a Shas's helmet, round, blank faced and covered in the sept markings across the visor, adding to the vaguely tribal look.

''Move it carefully, and give him the stimulant when you lock it in,'' Ked'is instructed as the drones moved forward and locked it into the armored neck brace that supported Vash'ka's body and controlled his spine.

The stimulant was injected and Vash'ka came awake.

He saw life now, the Fio tech and the medical bay through oculars, picking out details that his organic eyes never could, but strangely, missing the life-like quality that his organic yes could.

He breathed, but now entirely by his own will, machines in his chest and throat forcibly did it for him, leading to a deep breathing sound that came. Almost like a sucking noise.

_Hoo-pah, hoo-pah, hoo-pah._

It was regular, controlled, perfectly spaced.

Vash'ka hated it.

_''You-you have awakened me?''_ he asked. But this was not his voice, he spoke through a vocorder, receiving information from his damaged vocal cords and transmitting them through a short range commn system.

It was deeper than his normal voice, sharper and more baritone. Ked'is was almost frightened by that blank mask, with it's sept markings, and deep, mechanical voice.

''Yes, I'm afraid that you suffered significant damage in the battle, you have lost your left arm, right leg and left foot, your respiratory and ocular systems have also been damaged to the point where I required significant bionic resort-''

_''I will hear about it later,''_ Vash'ka cut him off._ ''Now let me walk,'_ he commanded.

''I don't think it's entirely good for you to-'' Ked'is began.

_''Now,''_ there was something dangerous in that voice.

Reluctantly, Ked'is manipulated the controls, lowing the medi-pod, disengaging the restraints, allowing Vash'ka to walk down onto the floor. The Tau warrior dropped, stumbling briefly, before servos whined and he righted himself again.

Vash'ka walked along, slowly, uncertainly, his new limbs strange and foreign, slowly he righted himself.

_''Leave me,''_ he said, deep voice casting out. Hurriedly, Ked'is left. Vash'ka flexed his left hand, faintly hearing his bionic fingers moved at each touch of his command.

Then he smashed his hand into a nearby console, symbols flashed briefly before he withdrew his fist from the shattered controls as he screamed loudly, pushing the vocoder to it's limits.

This new body was not him, he was not a mechanical abomination. He felt foreign and strange.

But then it occurred to him it did not matter, nothing would stop revenge, nothing would stop him from returning to duty, and to becoming a Shas'O. A terrible, feeling filled him to try again. To get his revenge.

This he swore.

**The End (For now)**

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

**Alright first of all I would like to thank all who reviews. I would also like to thank TheLoneHunter for helping me develop and create _Claws's Glory._ Thank you, your insights and information into Tau culture where most helpful.**

**I would also note that people in the past have accused my of ripping of TLH. This is not true, TheLoneHunter is fully aware of my story and has supported it and helped me with it. ****Indeed, for those of you who do not know, the entire character of Vash'ka was suggested by TLH, and I am glad for it, he is such an interesting character to write for.**

**I hoped you liked the Darth Vader transformation, it was added primarily for the Rule of Cool factor. I kept on laying the ''Imperial March'' while writing that scene.**

**As for the series. It will continue, I already have a sequel planned for the Eagle Claws called _Claws's Duty_, with another one beyond that.**

**As for the Tau characters, they may make an appearance, I have a story called _Trial by Fire_, featuring the remaining survivors from _Glory_. It will be a while in the making, I've got other projects to complete.**

**The Eagle Claws are my tabletop army, I have no pictures of them up yet, I might in the near future, considering my current lazy state. The Malnians are also my tabletop Guard. You can find more information on the Eagle Claws over at Bolter and Chainsword.**

**I may add another add-on chapter, filled with also more random fluff on the war, if I have the time to and I feel like it.**

**As for my favorite part? I guess it would have to be the scene at the Primary with Chemosian, Basiclus's rescue at the Primary, or the ending climax at Kro'vas.**

**If anyone noticed, the last few chapter titles where a refernce to the _Fire_ Caste. The last title was a pun on the names of both the Eagle Claws and the Tau.**

**More thanks to the people over at Black Library, especially the Ultramarines series which inspired me, particularly, _Courage and Honor_, an excellent book in my hunble opinion. As well as Imperial Armor: Taros.**

**I am aware that I have not gotten exactly much reviews, but I shall continue wirting regardless. For writing 40k fanfiction is my passion and my enjoyment.**

**Once again, thanks to all.**


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